Family-Placed Death Notice
ROBERT JOSEPH BURCH Robert Joseph Burch, 82, of Fayetteville, GA, died December 25, 2007 after an extended illness. Funeral services will be held at Fayetteville First United Methodist Church on Friday December 28th at 11:00 with Rev. Mark Westmoreland officiating. Burial will be at the Fayetteville City Cemetery. Visitation will be held on Thursday, December 27th from 4:00pm until 7:00pm at Carl J. Mowell Funeral Home. Mr. Burch was born in Inman, Georgia to John Ambrose Burch, Sr. and Nell Graham Burch. After graduating from Fayette County High School, he served in the U. S. Army during World War II along with his five brothers, and was stricken with wanderlust after being stationed in New Guinea and Australia. After completing his military stint, he earned a degree from the School of Agriculture at the University of Georgia. He worked as a civilian with the U. S. Army in Yokohama and Tokyo, Japan, and then returned to the United States on a Danish freighter that stopped at ports in the Orient, North Africa and Europe. He spent the next eight years in New York City where he took writing courses as a hobby. When one of his instructors suggested that he take up writing as a profession, he did so. Two years later, in 1962, Viking published a picture story for young children called "A Funny Place to Live". Since then, Mr. Burch has published 18 other children books. He quickly established himself as one of the most popular writers for young people, and his books have earned numerous awards and citations. "Queenie Peavy", selected as a Notable Book by the American Library Assosociation, was also the winner of the 1966 Children's Book Award for the Child Study Association, the Seventeenth Annual Literary Achievement Award of the Georgia Writers Association, the Jane Addams Children's Book Award for 1976, and 1971 Georgia Children's Book Award. "Skinny" was awarded the Georgia Children's Book Award in 1967, and in 1970 Burch was named Georgia Author of the Year for "Joey's Cat". In 1974 he received the George C. Stone Center for Children's Books Recognition of Merit Award and the Georgia Children's Book Award for "Doodle and the Go-Cart". In 1976 he received the Georgia Children's Book Award, once again, for "Two That Were Tough". "Ida Early Comes Over the Mountain" proved so popular that it served as the basis for a NBC television movie entitled "The Incredible Ida Early" that aired in 1987. On November 5, 2007 he was the first recipient of the W. Porter Kellam Lifetime Achievement Award from the University of Georgia. Robert Burch was a very notable author, but his passion was a heartfelt interest in people. He was a southern gentleman who made everyone seem extra-special. In an article written for the AJC in 1983 Burch said "I've spent interesting years in other parts of the country, other parts of the world, but there was always Fayette County to come back to. Unlike some writers, I can go home again. Although I may not have chosen to live all my adult life in Dixie, Ive never considered dying anywhere else". Mr. Burch is survived by his brothers Wilson Burch, Fayetteville, John Ambrose Burch, Jr., Fayetteville, Jim Burch (Annelle), Fayetteville; his sisters Emily B. Scovill (Tom), Clearwater, FL; Mary B. Harwood, Charlotte, NC and beloved nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his brothers, Walter Graham Burch and Howard Lester Burch. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Southwest Christian Care, 7225 Lester Road, Union City, GA 30291 or Fayetteville First United Methodist Church, 170 E. Lanier Ave, Fayetteville, GA 30214. Carl J. Mowell & Son, Fayetteville www.mowellfuneralhome.com
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