Obituary for Edmund Jeremiah "Jerry" Burke
Dateline – Ogunquit, ME
Edmund Jeremiah Burke
‘Jerry’
Born to prominent Boston attorney Edmund Joseph Burke and his wife, former schoolteacher Josephine Julia Burke (née Sullivan), Jerry was also, proudly, a grandson to former Superintendent of the Boston Public Schools Jeremiah Edmund Burke after whom the public high school is named. The second of four Burke children, Jerry was, unbeknownst to many, a redhead as a young boy and was raised in both Milton, Massachusetts, and Ogunquit, Maine. As a young man, Jerry graduated from St. John's Prep in Danvers, Massachusetts, and, subsequently, attended Providence College before graduating from Boston University with a bachelor's degree in history.
An athlete throughout much of his adult life, Jerry is widely remembered as a fan of college and professional baseball, football, and golf, but he was probably most passionate about hockey. A high-school hockey champion, Jerry also played during his college years and coached in Berwick after moving permanently to Maine from Massachusetts in the 1970s.
Also, in the 1970s, with great ambition, Jerry and friend Bobby Lizotte threw themselves into the restaurant business when they purchased The Inn Crowd next to the Ogunquit Playhouse. They made the restaurant and nightclub into a "happening" place with musical acts which included The Platters. Later, stepping back from ownership for a time, Jerry worked at iconic Ogunquit restaurants such as Poor Richard's Pub, the Blue Water Inn, and Jonathan's. Ultimately, Jerry capped his long career in the hospitality industry when restaurateur Billy Murphy, recognizing Jerry's talents and experience, hired Jerry for senior management. They built two extremely popular and highly successful restaurants, Ogunquit Seafood and, in East Boothbay, Maine, Lobsterman's Wharf. Meanwhile, from approximately 1990 until his death, Jerry quietly belonged to the ownership group behind the Cliff Realty Corporation and the Cape Neddick Country Club in York, Maine.
Jerry passed away at age 79 after a brief illness. Jerry was predeceased by his brother Phillip A. Burke of Old Orchard Beach, Maine, his brother Brian L. Burke of Ogunquit, and their parents. Jerry is survived by his sister, Judith C. Burke, of Ashland, Massachusetts, and her son, James B. Morrissey, III, also of Ashland.
Jerry was born May 9, 1940 and passed July 4, 2019. Friends may visit from 2 – 5 pm on Wednesday, July 10, 2019 at Bibber Memorial Chapel, 111 Chapel Road, Wells, ME. A funeral mass will be celebrated at 11 am on Thursday, July 11, 2019 at Holy Spirit Parish – St. Mary’s Church, 236 Eldridge Road, Wells, ME with Father Fred Morse. Interment will follow in Milton Cemetery in Milton, MA.
Edmund Jeremiah Burke
‘Jerry’
Born to prominent Boston attorney Edmund Joseph Burke and his wife, former schoolteacher Josephine Julia Burke (née Sullivan), Jerry was also, proudly, a grandson to former Superintendent of the Boston Public Schools Jeremiah Edmund Burke after whom the public high school is named. The second of four Burke children, Jerry was, unbeknownst to many, a redhead as a young boy and was raised in both Milton, Massachusetts, and Ogunquit, Maine. As a young man, Jerry graduated from St. John's Prep in Danvers, Massachusetts, and, subsequently, attended Providence College before graduating from Boston University with a bachelor's degree in history.
An athlete throughout much of his adult life, Jerry is widely remembered as a fan of college and professional baseball, football, and golf, but he was probably most passionate about hockey. A high-school hockey champion, Jerry also played during his college years and coached in Berwick after moving permanently to Maine from Massachusetts in the 1970s.
Also, in the 1970s, with great ambition, Jerry and friend Bobby Lizotte threw themselves into the restaurant business when they purchased The Inn Crowd next to the Ogunquit Playhouse. They made the restaurant and nightclub into a "happening" place with musical acts which included The Platters. Later, stepping back from ownership for a time, Jerry worked at iconic Ogunquit restaurants such as Poor Richard's Pub, the Blue Water Inn, and Jonathan's. Ultimately, Jerry capped his long career in the hospitality industry when restaurateur Billy Murphy, recognizing Jerry's talents and experience, hired Jerry for senior management. They built two extremely popular and highly successful restaurants, Ogunquit Seafood and, in East Boothbay, Maine, Lobsterman's Wharf. Meanwhile, from approximately 1990 until his death, Jerry quietly belonged to the ownership group behind the Cliff Realty Corporation and the Cape Neddick Country Club in York, Maine.
Jerry passed away at age 79 after a brief illness. Jerry was predeceased by his brother Phillip A. Burke of Old Orchard Beach, Maine, his brother Brian L. Burke of Ogunquit, and their parents. Jerry is survived by his sister, Judith C. Burke, of Ashland, Massachusetts, and her son, James B. Morrissey, III, also of Ashland.
Jerry was born May 9, 1940 and passed July 4, 2019. Friends may visit from 2 – 5 pm on Wednesday, July 10, 2019 at Bibber Memorial Chapel, 111 Chapel Road, Wells, ME. A funeral mass will be celebrated at 11 am on Thursday, July 11, 2019 at Holy Spirit Parish – St. Mary’s Church, 236 Eldridge Road, Wells, ME with Father Fred Morse. Interment will follow in Milton Cemetery in Milton, MA.