Frederick C. Burdick

1931 - 2022

Burdick, Frederick C. DELMAR Frederick Clinton Burdick, 91, died on October 28, 2022, after a short illness. He was born in 1931, the second son of Harold Blake and Marion Manske Burdick of Clinton, N.Y. After graduating from Hamilton College in 1953, Mr. Burdick took his master's degree the following year from Albany State Teachers' College and then served two years in the U.S. Army during the Korean War. He was hired by Bethlehem Central School in 1957, teaching English at the high school for 12 years and then becoming the school's first assistant principal. In 1968, Mr. Burdick was appointed principal at Bethlehem Junior High, where he designed the team-teaching and scheduling program to be used at the newly created middle school, where he remained principal until his retirement in 1994. During those 26 years, he introduced shared-decision making to staff, organized the Middle Works parent group, and was a charter member of Bethlehem Opportunities Unlimited. During the early 1970s, he was the health education training coordinator for eight school districts, training fifth through seventh grade teachers to instruct about the hazards of illegal drugs, alcohol and tobacco. He was also a past president of the Suburban Scholastic Principals Council and the 1993 CASDA Secondary Principal of the Year. While working for BOCES from 1994-2004, Mr. Burdick was implemental in the regional scoring process for the fourth, sixth, and eighth grade New York State ELA Tests. For many years, Fred served as chief election inspector for the Bethlehem Central budget voting and the Albany County District 12 primary and national elections. He was a past-president of Bethlehem Tri-Village Nursery Board of Directors, Bethlehem Teachers Association, and Bethlehem Lions Club. Fred was a member of the Hamilton College Alumni Council, the University Club of Albany, and the Board of Governors of Wolfert's Roost Country Club, where he was a member for almost 50 years. Fred was a communicant and eucharistic minister of St. Thomas the Apostle Church in Delmar and served on the Pastoral Council, St. Thomas School Board, and various committees of finance, buildings and grounds, auditing and more recently on the Diocese of Albany Pastoral Council. In 2014, he completed a short book for publication titled, The Other Iscariot. Fred was an avid golfer and skier and instilled the love of both sports in his children. He enjoyed playing bridge, duplicate bridge, and oil painting. He and Pat traveled all over the world, seeing well over 30 countries. Fred was predeceased by his wife and best friend of 60 years, Patricia Curry Burdick. He is survived by four children, Mary Patricia Burdick (Leo Loveless), Peter Blake Burdick, Melissa Carroll Gilson (Tim), and Thomas Curry Burdick (Ann); his brother, Daniel H. Burdick II; eight grandchildren, John Harold, Emily Blake and Margaret Elizabeth Remmel, Jack Quinlan, Emma Curry and William Frederick Gilson, Ann Elizabeth and Amy Curry Burdick; nieces, Victoria and Vanessa Burdick; nephew, Daniel H. Burdick III; and great-nephew, Liam Burdick. He was also predeceased by his older brother, H. Blake Burdick Jr., and sister, Diane M. Burdick. Fred's life will be celebrated in a Mass of Christian Burial in St. Thomas the Apostle Church, 35 Adams Place, Delmar, on Monday, November 7, at 10:30 a.m. Calling hours will be held on Sunday, November 6, from 2-5 p.m. at the Daniel Keenan Funeral Home, Inc., 490 Delaware Ave., Albany. Burial will be at the convenience of the family. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Capital City Rescue Mission, 259 S. Pearl St., Albany, NY, 12202, or the Hospice Inn at St. Peter's Hospital, 310 S. Manning Blvd., Albany, NY, 12208. Online condolences may be offered at danielkeenanfuneralhome.com.