“I’d still like to take a look,” said Dan, “after all, I came all this way.” From “Foggy Point Light”, by Jeff Burns, page 28.
I was very blessed to have Jeff as a friend and adopted brother for 43 years. He and I experienced so many wonderful times together and we were blessed to have grown together through the tough times. I am beyond grateful for the time God allowed us to be friends and brothers to each other.
Curiosity about how things worked, operated and exploring his multitude of interests in his life, required Jeff to say the words many times that his character Dan said above in the first book of the “Foggy Point Light Trilogy”. He traveled, along with his loving family, many miles to explore his passions, including his love of lighthouses. It was through these travels and much time spent writing, that he was able to complete two of the three planned books in the trilogy. Jeff had already started writing the final book of the trilogy, “Project Vortex”.
Early in the morning of January 3rd of 2022, Jeff, being a born again Christian, heard the Homecoming Call from his savior Jesus Christ to enter Heaven. While the suddenness of his passing due to Covid caught those of us who loved and cared about him off guard, we are grateful for the comfort of Jeff’s faith in God and know that we will be together again as promised in the Bible.
There are so many stories that need to be shared to properly honor the life that Jeff lived. This blog will be posting many of those stories under the title of “Shining Memories of Jeff”. Shining was chosen not just because of the lighthouses Jeff loved, but also because when Jeff entered a room, he would bring brightness to the room and to those in the room. He was also gifted at making people laugh, but he could also make the complicated things, like Pascal or Cobalt computer languages brighter for those of us who just saw complicated darkness. He was such an intellectual, but had an amazing dose of common sense and humor, that he could relate to anyone. That mix of personality traits came through very well in his writing.
For almost 33 years, Jeff was married to his devoted wife Julie. He was also father of one son, TJ, who Jeff helped to create a YouTube channel called TJElevatorfan, which has over 16,000 subscribers and 19,000,000 views. Family was a priority for Jeff. Julie recently shared this sentiment about their time together, “I miss Jeff more than words could ever express but thankfully memories of the time we did have together will continue to keep him forever in my heart.” TJ also shared these heartfelt words about his father, “Dad may no longer be living on this earth but his light continues to shine through my memories of him. I will miss him until we meet again on Heaven’s shores”
There are many more “Shining Memories of Jeff” that will be shared here on the Foggy Point Light Blog. The memories shared will allow you to remember that particular moment with Jeff if you knew him or allow you to experience the story of a Christian life well lived if this is your first introduction to him. Stay tuned to the Foggy Point Light Blog as we present the “Shining Memories of Jeff” Series.
Please keep Julie and TJ Burns in your prayers.
Scott Raines, October 23, 2022
“God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” Ephesians 2:8-10 (NLT)
Video tribute of Jeff’s life prepared by his son, TJ Burns. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tATEvrGGqC8&t=205s
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