Peter Haskell Burr – 50th Reunion Essay

Peter Haskell Burr

Date of Death: 1-Jul-2014

College: Davenport

(This obituary appeared in obittree.com and was reprinted on the Class Website. Comments by Bill Alper appeared in the May/June 2015 Class Notes)

Peter H. Burr, formerly of Kennebunk, ME died Tuesday, July 1, 2014 at the Lowell General Hospital in Lowell, Massachusetts following a period of declining health. Peter was born March 9, 1947 in Portland, the son of Lewis Haskell and Frances Towne Burr. Growing up in Kennebunk, he was a 1965 graduate of Kennebunk High School, where he was an outstanding student. He also participated in track and field, baseball, and drama club. He went on to attend Yale University, studying Political History & Science.

Peter served his country as a member of the armed forces, attending officers training school, and then in Vietnam, where he worked in the adjutants office communicating with family members of servicemen serving in Vietnam. Upon his discharge, he returned to the area, attending Nasson College in Springvale, where he completed his degree. He worked for several years for local, state, and national political offices. His passion was politics, and he was uncanny in predicting political races. Most recently, due to his failing health, he has resided in residential care facilities in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. Survivors include his brother Tim Burr and his wife Sherrie of Falmouth, his former sister in law Lucille Burr Hutchinson of Arundel, nephew Douglas Burr, and his wife Rebecca of Camden.

Bill Alper wrote: I knew Peter a bit while we were at Yale, through the Yale Political Union. We were in the same Party (of the right) but he remained conservative and a supporter of the war in Vietnam and I stopped being either by the end of freshman year. I believe he remained committed to conservative causes throughout his life. Nonetheless, we stayed cordial and he was always friendly. I didn’t have contact with him for years after graduation, though I did exchange a few e-mails and received several in relatively recent years, the last at the end of 2010. He spent several years in a rehab/health care facility in New Hampshire and was still there when I last heard from him. I believe he was suffering from neuropathy and then suffered a loss of his kidneys, requiring dialysis 3 times a week. From his descriptions of events at the facility, it appeared to me that he had been a loyal and friendly companion to others at the facility and cared for and about them.