Colleen Brown Burt
Colleen Brown was born in Virden, NM, to parents Floyd and Elmina Brown on June 6, 1937. She was their seventh child. The family moved to Kirtland, NM, in October 1943 when her father purchased a farm where they grew corn, alfalfa, onions, and potatoes. The small, one-bedroom house had no running water (just a pump and well outside), an outhouse, and no electricity. Her brothers slept in a room in the detached garage, and Colleen and her two sisters shared a bed in the same bedroom with their parents. She was too shy to go to Primary for the first month living in Kirtland, but finally went because of her big brother Dewaine’s urging. She had long, thick, red hair that she usually wore in braids. She was baptized in the nearby Jackson’s Lake by her father near her 8th birthday and considered this one of the most important steps in her life. She tried to keep up with her big brothers and the neighbor kids, playing games such as “Piggy-wants-a-signal” and “Schenny.” Her brother Cam taught her to ride their bicycle.
She loved her “Mommie” so much and loved to listen to her sing and play the guitar or the piano. Her favorite song was “Red River Valley.” Her mother died of breast cancer on February 18, 1947, and she always wished she could recall more about her. Even as she was dying herself, she expressed a longing to be rocked again by her dear mother and looked forward to a warm reunion.
In 1948, her father’s stomach problems worsened, and he finally had surgery for his ulcers. Shortly after the surgery, gangrene set in and he died on November 1, 1948. It was decided that they would sell the farm and her mother Elmina’s siblings would take the children. Colleen and Rita went to live with her Aunt Dorothy and Uncle Parley, and she appreciated her sacrifice and considered herself and Rita lucky, even though Dorothy was “a strong woman who didn’t put up with much foolishness.”
Throughout middle school, she participated in several plays and sports, and in high school was often elected to positions of leadership and dance royalty. As a sophomore, she served as the Ward Primary Chorister, which boosted her self-confidence. She sang a duet of “By the Light of the Silvery Moon” at her Junior Prom. Virden High School had a total of 30 students, and she was a cheerleader, on the volleyball and tennis teams, and in the chorus. She graduated as Salutatorian, which helped her to be admitted to Brigham Young University (BYU) that fall.
Being the service-minded young women she was, she volunteered at the church welfare farm in Provo, where she met a handsome, like-minded, young man named Merrill Burt. They dated for a while and—with no disagreement from Colleen—Merrill decided he should serve an LDS mission. She wrote to “Burt Burt” while he served in the Eastern Canada Mission and even took a year off school to live and work in Los Angeles with her sister Ferneth, just to ensure she was still attending BYU when he returned to finish his education. They were married in the Mesa Arizona Temple on June 10, 1960. Colleen earned her degree in Business Education, and Merrill completed his Chemistry degree at BYU and was hired in 1962 by General Electric. This new opportunity took them to Richland, Washington, where Merrill’s parents still lived. He worked as a chemist for various DOE contractors, winning awards for his work and dedication, until he retired in 1995.
Colleen and Merrill settled into family life in Richland, growing their family. By 1970, they had five children and needed more space, so they designed and built a new, two-story house on a 1-acre plot in Kennewick, doing much of the work themselves. They moved into the house in late 1970 and added a sixth child in 1972. Their family was now complete. There they happily raised fruit, vegetables, chickens, cows, and their six children on the little “farm.”
Merrill served faithfully in the church, often in the Scouting program, going on hikes and campouts with his four sons. He required his sons to earn their Eagle Award before they could get their driver’s license. Colleen served in various organizations while raising their children, mostly in Young Women’s and Relief Society presidencies. Everyone loved her and she soon was dubbed “Saint Colleen.” She found several ways to supplement the family income over the years including; in-home daycare, supporting her children’s many paper routes, and managing Santa’s photo booth at the mall. Colleen had a rare talent for compassion and found difficulty in saying “no.” She constantly tried her best to pull off her roles as wife, mother, daycare provider, RS President and other time-consuming church callings, cook, seamstress, gardener, and chauffer – a great example of never quitting. She was known for making beautiful quilts and others feel valued, delicious homemade jam and bread, crying easily, working hard, a joyful and contagious laugh, commitment to God, a positive attitude, frugal sensibility, and unselfish compassion.
Colleen and Merrill served together in the Seattle Temple as ordinance workers for several years and planned to serve a full-time mission together, but within a year of Merrill’s retirement, he was diagnosed with stomach cancer and died on November 30, 1997. She faced this devastating loss with her naturally positive attitude and kept herself busy with gardening, visits, various service projects, grandkids, and traveling with her daughters. Near the end of her life, an article was researched and published in the local newspaper all about her service. It told of how she spent her days making leper bandages, doing online name extraction/genealogy, and sewing quilts for Kosovo refugees. She also wrote poems and visited the sick and needy – all while fighting cancer. The article stressed how she was always thinking of others and focusing on her many blessings – never feeling sorry for the loss she’d suffered or trials she was made to endure. The Church News picked up the story and published it in their “Shining Moments” series in the October 16, 1999 issue. She died of breast cancer on November 7, 1999, surrounded by all six of her children. She is missed every day!
She loved her “Mommie” so much and loved to listen to her sing and play the guitar or the piano. Her favorite song was “Red River Valley.” Her mother died of breast cancer on February 18, 1947, and she always wished she could recall more about her. Even as she was dying herself, she expressed a longing to be rocked again by her dear mother and looked forward to a warm reunion.
In 1948, her father’s stomach problems worsened, and he finally had surgery for his ulcers. Shortly after the surgery, gangrene set in and he died on November 1, 1948. It was decided that they would sell the farm and her mother Elmina’s siblings would take the children. Colleen and Rita went to live with her Aunt Dorothy and Uncle Parley, and she appreciated her sacrifice and considered herself and Rita lucky, even though Dorothy was “a strong woman who didn’t put up with much foolishness.”
Throughout middle school, she participated in several plays and sports, and in high school was often elected to positions of leadership and dance royalty. As a sophomore, she served as the Ward Primary Chorister, which boosted her self-confidence. She sang a duet of “By the Light of the Silvery Moon” at her Junior Prom. Virden High School had a total of 30 students, and she was a cheerleader, on the volleyball and tennis teams, and in the chorus. She graduated as Salutatorian, which helped her to be admitted to Brigham Young University (BYU) that fall.
Being the service-minded young women she was, she volunteered at the church welfare farm in Provo, where she met a handsome, like-minded, young man named Merrill Burt. They dated for a while and—with no disagreement from Colleen—Merrill decided he should serve an LDS mission. She wrote to “Burt Burt” while he served in the Eastern Canada Mission and even took a year off school to live and work in Los Angeles with her sister Ferneth, just to ensure she was still attending BYU when he returned to finish his education. They were married in the Mesa Arizona Temple on June 10, 1960. Colleen earned her degree in Business Education, and Merrill completed his Chemistry degree at BYU and was hired in 1962 by General Electric. This new opportunity took them to Richland, Washington, where Merrill’s parents still lived. He worked as a chemist for various DOE contractors, winning awards for his work and dedication, until he retired in 1995.
Colleen and Merrill settled into family life in Richland, growing their family. By 1970, they had five children and needed more space, so they designed and built a new, two-story house on a 1-acre plot in Kennewick, doing much of the work themselves. They moved into the house in late 1970 and added a sixth child in 1972. Their family was now complete. There they happily raised fruit, vegetables, chickens, cows, and their six children on the little “farm.”
Merrill served faithfully in the church, often in the Scouting program, going on hikes and campouts with his four sons. He required his sons to earn their Eagle Award before they could get their driver’s license. Colleen served in various organizations while raising their children, mostly in Young Women’s and Relief Society presidencies. Everyone loved her and she soon was dubbed “Saint Colleen.” She found several ways to supplement the family income over the years including; in-home daycare, supporting her children’s many paper routes, and managing Santa’s photo booth at the mall. Colleen had a rare talent for compassion and found difficulty in saying “no.” She constantly tried her best to pull off her roles as wife, mother, daycare provider, RS President and other time-consuming church callings, cook, seamstress, gardener, and chauffer – a great example of never quitting. She was known for making beautiful quilts and others feel valued, delicious homemade jam and bread, crying easily, working hard, a joyful and contagious laugh, commitment to God, a positive attitude, frugal sensibility, and unselfish compassion.
Colleen and Merrill served together in the Seattle Temple as ordinance workers for several years and planned to serve a full-time mission together, but within a year of Merrill’s retirement, he was diagnosed with stomach cancer and died on November 30, 1997. She faced this devastating loss with her naturally positive attitude and kept herself busy with gardening, visits, various service projects, grandkids, and traveling with her daughters. Near the end of her life, an article was researched and published in the local newspaper all about her service. It told of how she spent her days making leper bandages, doing online name extraction/genealogy, and sewing quilts for Kosovo refugees. She also wrote poems and visited the sick and needy – all while fighting cancer. The article stressed how she was always thinking of others and focusing on her many blessings – never feeling sorry for the loss she’d suffered or trials she was made to endure. The Church News picked up the story and published it in their “Shining Moments” series in the October 16, 1999 issue. She died of breast cancer on November 7, 1999, surrounded by all six of her children. She is missed every day!
Information for Colleen Brown Burt
Parents: Floyd Alonzo & Elmina Mortenson Brown
Birth: 6 Jun 1937
Place: Virden, NM
Married: 10 Jun 1960
Place: Mesa AZ Temple
Died: 7 Nov 1999
Place: Kennewick, WA
Buried: Richland, WA
Spouse: Merrill C Burt
Spouse’s Birth: 10 Sept 1936
Spouse’s Birthplace: Murray, UT
Died: 30 Nov 1997
Place: Kennewick, WA
Buried: Richland, WA
Spouse’s Parents: Irvin Christian & Edna May Everett Burt
Birth: 6 Jun 1937
Place: Virden, NM
Married: 10 Jun 1960
Place: Mesa AZ Temple
Died: 7 Nov 1999
Place: Kennewick, WA
Buried: Richland, WA
Spouse: Merrill C Burt
Spouse’s Birth: 10 Sept 1936
Spouse’s Birthplace: Murray, UT
Died: 30 Nov 1997
Place: Kennewick, WA
Buried: Richland, WA
Spouse’s Parents: Irvin Christian & Edna May Everett Burt