Virginia C. Burlage

Virginia C. Burlage died on August 20, 2025, at the age of 92. She was the daughter of William and Kathryn Everett of Sandusky, Ohio. She graduated from Marygrove College in Detroit and married James E. Burlage in 1959; they were together until his passing in 2007.
She started life on an Ohio farm (during the Great Depression and World War II) and with Jim built a family in Lexington, Massachusetts for 26 years, with a two-year stint in Hong Kong and Singapore in the 1970s. She moved to Sausalito, California with Jim in 1985, and they retired to Sea Ranch, California. She spent the last four years of her life with her daughter Liz and her husband Jeff in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
Sorrow is felt by all who knew her as her intelligence, faith, humor, common sense, uncommon devotion to family, generosity, and just plain goodness have left us. She was the "second" Mom to many with her come-one-come-all open home policy.
Ginny had the benefits of 10 decades to develop lasting friendships, always engaging in the communities around her across the globe-balancing work as a health technician and office administrator and fun, whether it be her love of long walks on beaches, exploring architectural sites across the world with Jim, or vigorous games of doubles tennis. Church and her faith were important to her; she literally built church buildings and communities from the ground up, including organizing the "downstairs Mass" in Lexington and helping design and construct Mary Star of the Sea in Gualala, California.
She was able to actively participate in the lives of her four children and 12 grandchildren, instilling in all of them the desire to live life to its fullest with no excuses. Her grandchildren loved her immensely and will miss her.
She is survived by four children: Elizabeth Vincent (Jeffrey), Matthew (Juliette), Ann Meara (John), and Kristina Fitzgerald (Matthew); and by grandchildren Benjamin and Katherine Vincent; Kellyann, James, Paul, Matthew, and Ryan Burlage; Emily, Elizabeth, and Nicholas Meara; and Nicole and Michael Fitzgerald.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Good Buy Clothes, P.O. Box 93, Point Arena, CA 95468 or Book Harvest, 2501 University Drive, Durham, NC 27707, https://www.bookharvest.org.