Longtime community volunteer Ann Burka dies at 100
ANN LOWENSTEIN BURKA, a community activist and volunteer, died peacefully on Wednesday, Dec. 25, at the revered age of 100.
ANN LOWENSTEIN BURKA
Burka was a native of Mobile, Alabama, but relocated to New Orleans, when she was just 20 to join the love of her life, Morris E. Burka, Jr. The two were were happily married for 66 years.
Before moving to New Orleans, she had attended Stephens College before transferring to the University of Michigan. Even though she had moved to the Crescent City, she always maintained a special place in her heart for Mobile, especially for the Grand Hotel in Point Clear. She often quoted her favorite Aunt Rose who said, “You can take me anywhere in the world, but always bring me back to Point Clear.”
Embracing New Orleans as her new home, she had a gift for making and keeping friends while raising her family. In her later years, she would say, “I like where I came from, I like where I am, and I like where I am going.” Once in New Orleans, she got involved in community activities and served on various boards. These include the New Orleans Speech and Hearing Center, Sara Mayo Hospital, the National Council of Jewish Women and Longue Vue House and Gardens.
Her volunteerism was recognized with the Volunteer Activist Award from the Institute of Human Understanding and the Weiss Award presented to her by the National Conference of Christians and Jews, now called the National Conference for Community and Justice. This latter organization works to promote understanding and respect among people of different races, religions, and cultures.
It might be considered as more than coincidence that she passed away on the first day of Chanukah and Christmas, She was very comfortable bridging the gaps between those two great traditions.
Burka had the “it” factor, an intangible, magnetic effect on others of all ages. One of her younger friends said, “she has it all: looks, style, kindness, eternal youth, and most of all, fun.” She treated others with an “I’m for you” attitude. She loved to dance, especially with her husband. Together they made quite an elegant couple. Her two sons have kept her passion for dancing alive. She was a well-spring of joy, and those around her always felt that joy. She was viewed as a role model of how to age gracefully. She never lost her joie de vivre. Even in her last days, having become a centenarian, if asked how she was doing she would say, “fine!” or “Happy.”
An only child who lost her mother before age 10 and her father when she was 17, Burka would often say “I’ve had lots of downs over the years, but I just climb back up.” The key she said, was, “I love life and I love people.” and that love was returned throughout her life.
She and her husband, who was in the export business, traveled the world, mixing business with pleasure. They were a dynamic duo with he handling business agents and she entertaining their families. She spoke a universal language of kindness, fun, and interest in other’s lives. No matter what country they visited, they left having made friends, not just business partners.
Most important to Burka was her family. Dinners together, trips together, involvement in their schools, she was always attending their athletic events, teaching dance classes, chaperoning school trips; she was always there cheering them on. She delighted in their accomplishments and was there to help them with their disappointments. She shared her pluck and positivity with her two boys.
Also central in her life were her deep friendships. Having little family in New Orleans, she thought of her friends as family. She always had the welfare of others in mind, was fiercely loyal, and in touch with her many close friends on a daily basis.
Burka taught us much about how to live life to the fullest through a happy marriage, commitment to family, the importance of deep friendships, the ability to laugh at herself, a genuine interest in others, community involvement, and to look on the positive side of people. Her spiritual strength, learned from her aunt, helped her navigate many of life’s challenges. She didn’t count her age; she counted her blessings. Ann cautioned us, before her time to pass, saying, “Don’t grieve for me, I’ve had a wonderful life, an I wouldn’t change a damn thing!”
She was predeceased by her husband in 2010 and is survived by her two sons, Reece (Julia) and Andy (Cathy), four grandchildren and eight great grandchildren.
A graveside service was held in Metairie Cemetery on Monday, December 30, 2024. The service was conducted by Temple Sinai Emeritus Rabbi Ed Paul Cohn.
Memorial donations in her name may be sent to the Greater New Orleans Foundation, 919 Saint Charles Ave., New Orleans, LA 70130 or the Anti-Defamation League, 935 Gravier St., New Orleans, LA 70112.
To view and sign the online guest book, please visit www.lakelawnmetairie.com
