JIMMY BRUCE BURKE was not made of “snips and snails and puppy dogs tails” like other boys of his generation. Instead, according to his granddaughter Alley, “Pappaw” was made of “steel, raw eggs, and furry woodland creatures.”

Jim was born and raised in Stickleyville, VA. At various times a milk truck driver, tobacco farmer, and laborer, he worked hard his entire life. There was never a lot of extra money floating around, but he always made sure his kids never wanted for anything they needed. He could sometimes seem a quiet sort, but his simple, straightforward exterior hid a fierce intelligence and humorous wit.

He raised his family in the Lord’s house, and in his mind, there were very few excuses sufficient to keep a rebellious teenager from attending a service. But if the atmosphere in the car on the way to the meetin’ house could be quiet due to surly teens, on the way home it never was: filled with the Holy Spirit, and inspired by the old timey singing that would often raise the rafters during the service, the whole family would sing hymns, led by his strong tenor, all the way back down the creek on the way home. As his family grew up, he passed on his musical talent by teaching his granddaughter to sing as he drove her to the little country church where both his daughters and granddaughter were all saved over the years. In later times, it was his granddaughter who would pick him up and drive him to church—the music continued even then.

Jim was called home on October 14, 2015 at the age of 73. His memory lives on in the hearts of his loving wife of 39 years, Doris Burke; his 2 daughters, Linda Burke and Joyce Skidmore; his granddaughter; 1 brother, Tyler Burke; 2 sisters, Francis “Wren” Tomlinson and Lois Page; and innumerable friends and loved ones.

At the time of his home going in Kingsport TN, he joined his father, Robert “Zack” Burke; his mother Mary Burke; 2 brothers, Robert “Champ” Burke and John David Burke; and 2 sisters, Eula Fern Marcum and Zelma Bowen; who were already there waiting for him.

-Written by the family