Don Bourque

Dr. Don Bourque, age 79, died on October 12, 2022, peacefully at home in Depoe Bay, Oregon. He grew up in Long Island, New York, son of Philippe and AnnaBelle Bourque. A 1960 graduate of West Babylon High School in New York, he received his B.A. in Biology from Johns Hopkins University and his M.S. and Ph.D. in Botany/Zoology/Biochemistry from Duke University.  In 1973, Dr. Bourque joined the University of Arizona faculty, serving continuously as a tenured Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular and Cellular Biology until 2011, when upon retirement he became Professor Emeritus. Dr. Bourque joined the Tucson Symphony Orchestra (TSO) in 1973 and was a member of the TSO bass section until his passing. Don originally trained as a violinist and renewed his violin playing in the mid-1990s. In 1996, he joined the Foothills Philharmonic Orchestra, alternating between bass and violin sections, as well as serving as concertmaster. Don was a proud union member of the American Federation of Musicians.  In 2004-2005, Dr. Bourque was a Visiting Scholar in the U.S. State Department, in the Nonproliferation Bureau, Office of Proliferation Threat Reduction. His work was focused in the Russian Federation, helping to redirect former Soviet biological weapons scientists to develop new therapeutic drugs and vaccines. After completing this assignment, he returned to the University of Arizona and the Tucson Symphony.  Preceded in death by his parents and brother Greg Bourque, Don is survived by his wife Susan Knowlton, daughter Adrienne Bourque and her husband Steve Pitts, by sisters Lorraine Rudzitis and Michele Bourque-Sewards, beloved nieces and nephews and by many thousands of valued students, colleagues and friends. He enjoyed camping and fishing from an early age and especially loved fly fishing with his daughter in Arizona's White Mountains. Don was the life of the party, loved food, wine and conversation, and will be greatly missed by all those who had the good fortune of having known him. A celebration of Don's life will be held at a later date in Tucson, Arizona.   Memorial contributions may be made to the Tucson Symphony Orchestra, 2175 N. Sixth Avenue Tucson, AZ 85705.