Gerard Burke

10/16/2004

Gerard Burke, 77, of 40 Curran Road died Saturday at home. Born in Adams on Dec. 19, 1926, son of Ralph and Margaret LaFave Burke, he attended schools in North Adams. He also had resided on Aztec Drive in North Adams. A decorated Army veteran of both World War II and the Korean War, he served as a corporal in the Pacific theater, including a year in occupied Japan. He re-enlisted on Jan. 3, 1951, and served until his honorable discharge as a corporal on Dec. 2, 1953. Mr. Burke was employed as a mason by Zipperling Construction Co. and as a truck driver by Holland Co., both in Adams. He was first employed by the former Sprague Electric Co. in North Adams and later by Cornish Wire Co. in Williamstown. He was a former trustee of Dr. George L. Curran Post 996 VFW and a member of the Frank R. Stiles Post 125 American Legion, both in North Adams, and a member of American Legion Post 29 in Readsboro, Vt. He was an avid fisherman and hunter and a member of the Stamford (Vt.) Sportsman Club. He leaves a sister, Irene LaFonde of Worcester and his friend, Alice LaFountain, with whom he made his home. FUNERAL NOTICE -- A Liturgy of Christian Burial for Gerard Burke will be celebrated Thursday at 11 at Notre Dame des Sept Douleurs Church in Adams by the Rev. Bonaventure Moccia, CP. Burial with full military honors will follow in Southview Cemetery, North Adams. Calling hours at FLYNN & DAGNOLI-MONTAGNA HOME FOR FUNERALS, West Chapels, 521 West Main St., North Adams, will be Thursday from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. At Mr. Burke's request, memorial donations are suggested for Alice LaFountain's grandchildren's fund through the funeral home. Survivors include two nephews, Rolland and Michael LaFonde; two nieces, Sandra LaBombard and Christine Levesque; his best friend, Alice LaFountain, and her children Terri LaFountain and Arthur LaFountain and his wife, Agnes, and her grandchildren Michela and Micheal LaVigne, Alicia, Alice and Arthur B. LaFountain and Seth Griffin. He was predeceased by his brother, Rolland Burke, who was killed during World War II at the age of 18, and a nephew, Keith LaFonde in 1995.

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