Robert Burn:
CLASS OF 1957
Clarksburg High SchoolClass of 1957
Clarksburg, CA
Robert's Story
Life
I graduated from the Naval Academy on June 6, 1961. Four days later, on June 10, Bonnie Super and I were married. Within four years, we had three children, Jennifer, Helen, and Reed. Jokingly called the little blisters because of Bonnie's Super Burn married name. The "then" photo was taken in 1966. The "now" family picture, taken in August 2015. Bonnie and I are seated, of course. Unfortunately, Bonnie was diagnosed with lung cancer and passed away on January 20, 2016. She is buried at our favorite cemetery in Ann Arbor, MI.. Behind us in the "now" picture from left to right: niece Elizabeth, son Reed, granddaughter Stephannie, sister Dorrine, daughter Helen, grandson Christopher, daughter-in-law Ariadna, and daughter Jennifer.
I was a Navy submariner until 1971. After working in the civilian nuclear industry for a couple of years, I took a research faculty position at the University of Michigan in 1974 where I managed a radiation research facility for 22 years until both Bonnie and I retired in 1996. She was an administrator at the University of Michigan hospital. Along the way, I completed graduate degrees in electrical engineering and naval architecture at MIT and in nuclear engineering at the University of Michigan.
We bought a place in Florida in 1998 and moved permanently to Florida in 1999. You Californians might wonder why so many midwesterners move to Florida. It is cold in the midwest! We were going to be snowbirds; Michigan in the summer and Florida in the wiinter, but that lasted for only one year. Going back and forth and maintaining two homes was just too much effort. We liked Florida, but, after two hurricanes passed very nearby and the population of Florida began overflowing into the sea, we decided, in early 2006, to relocate to Las Cruces, NM. Las Cruces is a small university town with a temperate climate. And here I still am with no plans to go anywhere else.
Our oldest daughter, Jennifer, is in commercial real estate in Ann Arbor and New York City. Our second daughter, Helen, has a doctorate from the University of Michigan and is a tenured professor at her college in Seattle. Our son, Reed, is an engineer. He and his wife, Ari, who is a Mexican citizen, live in her home town in Mexico. He manages sales and...Expand for more
service for his company throughout the entire country of Mexico. Ari is a dentist and practices near their home. The two grand kids are 22 and 20 (in 2017). Both were born in Mexico so they have dual citizenship. Two years of Spanish at Clarksburg has come in handy. Grandson Christopher graduated form New Mexico State University here in Las Cruces in December, 2016. He lived with us for his first year, but then lived in an apartment on campus. Granddaughter Stephannie attends a university in Mexico.
The most enjoyable part of my career was my 22 years at Michigan. I had a great deal of autonomy in my laboratory, almost like having a small business but with the protective blanket of the University. We did a great deal of radiation related work for universities, the federal government, and private institutions including producing medical isotopes for cancer treatment, sterilization of bone and tissue for plastic surgeons, elemental analysis of artifacts, and radiation damage tests of steels and other materials used in nuclear power plants.
I had a great deal of freedom and I like to write so I wrote almost a hundred papers for the American Nuclear Society and several textbooks in nuclear engineering that are primarily used to train operators at nuclear power plants. I was lucky enough to be a consultant for the International Atomic Energy Agency. That allowed me to travel to Europe, Africa, and South America.
Now, I just kind of relax, do some work with local middle and high schools, putter around, and play a bit of golf. Bonnie and I both were involved in civic activities and government in our community. California seems a world away, but from New Mexico it is a relatively short trip. I have been back a few times to San Diego and Lake Tahoe. My sister lives in Carson City, Nevada, and she is my only living relative.
I would be remiss if I did not comment on my wife. She was a community activist both in Florida and in New Mexico. When she was diagnosed with cancer, she was given the Mayor of Las Cruces Distinguished Service Award, a Las Cruces Public Schools Certificate of Recognition, and an annual scholarship has been established in her name at New Mexico State University. She was quite a partner.
Hope you are happy and well.
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