ROBERT BURK

ROBERT STUART BURK (Age 90)  
Passed away peacefully at his home in Chevy Chase, MD, on May 26, 2020. Beloved husband of the late Miriam Pickett Burk; devoted father of Sandra Wilson Burk, Elaine Burk Zarnich (Robert Zarnich) and Robert Stuart Burk, Jr. (Kellie Anderson); and cherished grandfather of Hannah Zarnich, Genevieve Zarnich, Cecelia Burk and Robert Burk III.Mr. Burk was a proud native of Washington, D.C. His great-grandfather emigrated to the city from Germany in the 1860s, defended it with the Union Army during the Civil War, and established Burk's Bakery on 5th Street NW in the 1880s. Mr. Burk graduated from Coolidge High School in 1947, and received a BA in Economics from Duke University in 1951 and an LLB from Georgetown University School of Law in 1956. He served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War, and helped establish the 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne). Mr. Burk had a long and distinguished legal career in private and government practice, serving as a trial attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice and ultimately as General Counsel for the Interstate Commerce Commission for multiple administrations. He was nominated twice for the Tom C. Clark Award for most outstanding federal government attorney, and received a special award from Georgetown University Law Center for outstanding legal career in public service. Mr. Burk was an early and successful force in civil rights, helping to end discrimination in transportation. He also dedicated himself to recruiting female and black attorneys throughout his career. Outside of work, Mr. Burk was passionate about the wonders and beauty of nature, and an avid photographer. He enjoyed exploring Europe, the Florida Keys and the American West, hiking the Appalachian Trail and especially surf fishing along North Carolina's Outer Banks. But above all, he loved opening his home, his heart and his wonderful sense of humor to friends and neighbors, and spending as much time as possible with his family, his greatest source of joy.A memorial service to celebrate his life will be scheduled at a later date. Donations may be made in his memory to the hospice organization Capital Caring Health Philanthropy via https://www.capitalcaring.org/get-involved/donate/ Please view and sign the family guest book at: www.PumphreyFuneralHome.com