Patrick M. Burke of Glen Mills, PA (formerly of Wilmington, DE), aged 88 years, died on October 2, 2024, at home with his wife of 57 years, Elizabeth.
Pat was born on May 6, 1936, in Killarney, Ireland to Patrick and Kathleen Burke of County Clare. He grew up in Dublin, with four sisters: Maírín, Eileen, Pauline and Nuala, who stayed close throughout their lives, giving love and support to each other across continents.
His life as an Irish Rover took him over many miles of the globe. He went to school in Dublin to the Irish Christian Brothers, Synge St. He graduated from Chelsea College, University of London with an honors degree in Chemistry and Physics. A PhD in organic chemistry from the University of Toronto completed his academics. Those years took him from Ireland to England to Canada and incorporated many friends and adventures.
After graduation from the U of T, he accepted a position as a Research Chemist at DuPont in Wilmington, DE. He spent 33 years there in a career he thoroughly enjoyed. He ended as a Research Fellow and had approximately 30 patents to his name.
Soon after he settled in Wilmington, his sister Pauline and her husband Jim came to Wilmington to live as well. They and their children, Michael, John and Ciara were an integral part of the family.
Pat met Elizabeth in Toronto and they married in1966 in West Vancouver, BC. It was a long way from his home and at that time travel from Ireland to western Canada was not feasible. He was a true hero accepting that an only child had to marry at home!
In the next few years their family grew. Katherine, Paul, Conor and Ashling brought more love and joy into Pat’s life.
He retired from DuPont in 1998 and quickly filled his days with sailing, traveling, photography and computers, among many other things. His early days on the west coast of Ireland with his fisherman uncles gave him a ‘pull’ to the sea, and he sailed the Chesapeake for many years, took an initial volunteer trip on the Kalmar Nyckel, and generally thrived as a skipper on his sailboats. He and Elizabeth were happy wanderers, often with friends, exploring faraway places. He also enjoyed many happy days at Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at the University of Delaware, exploring new subjects, and teaching computer skills.
The highlight of his retirement was spending time with his grandchildren, Sophie and Declan Pollard, Anya and Cian Burke and Orla and Finn Gonzales-Burke. His silly jokes, oft repeated, (“Nellie behind the wallpaper”, and “reach for the sky”) will endure through the generations.
An intelligent, gentle, and truly kind man, full of wry humor, Pat was a man of few words, but quiet action. He had a profound curiosity about life and the world around him - always engaged, always giving of his time and energy.
Though he was a scientist all his life, his years in Ireland left him with a love of poetry. He liked to quote poetry and theorems in gaelic. Poems memorized in his youth would often punctuate dinners and gatherings.
This beloved man is survived by his wife, Elizabeth, his four children, Katherine (Kristian), Paul (Lisa), Ashling (Brad) and Conor in addition to his six grandchildren, Sophie and Declan Pollard, Anya and Cian Burke and Orla and Finn Gonzales-Burke.
Also surviving are his sisters Maírín and Nuala. He is predeceased by his parents and his sisters Eileen and Pauline.
Visitation: St. Joseph on the Brandywine Church. 10 Old Church Rd., Wilmington, DE on Tuesday, October 8 from 9:30-10:30 am, with a Mass of Christian Burial to follow at 10:30 am. Burial: Adjoining church yard.
Mass will be live streamed at this link: https://my.gather.app/remember/patrick-m-burke
In lieu of flowers the family suggests donations be made to the Ministry of Caring, 115 E. 14th Street Wilmington, DE 19801 or www.ministryofcaring.org
For online condolences visit: www.mccreryandharra.com
