Joan Harlow Burger

1945 - 2022

Joan Harlow Burger
Born: October 27, 1945
Died: February 26, 2022
Joan Harlow Burger, a long-time resident of DeKalb, Illinois, passed away on Saturday, February 26 following a courageous battle with lung disease over the last nine months. She was 76 years old.
Joan was born on October 27, 1945, in Winston Salem, North Carolina, where her parents, Ray and Ann (Harlow) Burger, were living after Ray was discharged from his wartime service in the US Army Air Forces. Following a brief stopover in Rochester, NY, the young family moved to Ann's hometown of Belvidere, Illinois in 1947, where they lived until their deaths in 1996 and 2012, respectively.
Joan graduated from Belvidere High School in 1963 and enrolled that fall at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. After earning her bachelor's degree with a psychology major in 1967, Joan worked for Indiana Bell for a time before entering graduate school in 1968 at Ohio State University, leaving two years later with a master's degree in higher education. Returning to Illinois, Joan worked for a time at the Belvidere Bank before becoming a residence hall advisor at Northern Illinois University.
It was at NIU that Joan met Linda Tillis, a fellow residence hall advisor, and in the fall of 1973, they began their life together, centered on family, friendships, travel, golf, and the growth of their careers. They married on Oct. 15, 2014, soon after same-sex marriages were legal in Illinois.
Joan left NIU in 1976 and returned in 1979 as a member of the university's judicial office. Three years later she enrolled in the School of Law at Loyola University Chicago. Upon her graduation in 1985, she joined the Chicago firm Meites & Frackman, where she became a partner four years later, when the firm became Meites, Frackman, Mulder & Burger. Joan retired from the practice in 2005.
Joan put her newfound time to great use. Over the years she served on the DeKalb Public Library Board of Trustees, the Board of Directors of Tails Humane Society, the Board of Directors of Kishwaukee Country Club, and the finance committee of the First Congregational Church. She was a founding member, with Linda, of the DeKalb Bread & Roses women's chorus.
Joan and Linda, a realtor in DeKalb, were enthusiastic theater goers and patrons of numerous Chicago arts institutions, including Steppenwolf Theatre, Goodman Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, TimeLine Theater Company, and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Over the years, Joan also played in several bridge and card clubs, including the DeKalb Library Whist Club.
With Linda, she traveled widely in the United States and to more than 20 countries internationally, in Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and South America.
But golf was Joan's greatest passion, and one she shared with Linda. Joan started playing at the age of 6 with clubs her dad cut down to size. She played on her high school girls' team and continued pursuing the sport every chance she could, often playing with Linda and her parents at courses around northern Illinois. At Kishwaukee Country Club, she was a member of the lady golfers' team, which competed against other area clubs, and in 2013 she won the lady's club championship. It was her second club championship, having won one at the, sadly, now defunct Bel-Mar Country Club in Belvidere nearly 40 years earlier. Even so, Joan said her proudest achievement in golf was winning the club's most improved golfer award.
Joan is survived by Linda; her sister Vicki Smallenberger and her husband Ron of Morton, Illinois; and her brother Bill Burger and his wife Susan Greenberg of Middlebury, Vermont. She also leaves six nephews and nieces: Jason (Melissa) Smallenberger, Jodi (Erik) Ciotti, James (Jillian) Smallenberger, Devon Burger, Jordan Burger, and Carly Burger, as well as a great-niece and four great-nephews: Ella Smallenberger, Evan Ciotti, Andrew Ciotti, Henry Smallenberger, and Jack Smallenberger.
The family will hold a private burial later in the year and requests that any contributions in Joan's honor be made to Tails Humane Society (https://www.tailshumanesociety.org/).
To sign the online guest book, go to www.ButalaFuneralHomes.com