John Pickthorn Burley

John Burley, 85, passed away Wednesday, December 11, 2019. He was born September 8, 1934, in Milan, OH a son of Don and Hazel (Pickthorn) Burley. John earned a scholarship to GMI and received his master's in mechanical engineering from the University of Detroit. He then worked for 35 years at the Fisher Body Division of the GM Tech Center in Warren, MI where he was instrumental in the design of car door beams and air bag containers. John retired from GM in 1988. John was a Boy Scout Scoutmaster, a member of the Knights of Columbus and the Parkview Hills Art Minders. He enjoyed family road trips and taking the family on numerous camping trips. In his free time he enjoyed chess, cards, puzzles, reading, drawing and painting. John also spent a lot of time researching the family genealogy in the pre-internet days. On June 1, 1957, John married the former Louise Pelon who preceded him in death on May 1, 2009. John was also preceded in death by a son, Edward L. Burley; his parents, Don and Hazel Burley; a brother, James Burley; and a sister, Virginia Burley. He is survived by four sons; Joseph (Brenda Snow) Burley, Daniel (Cathy) Burley, Matthew (Zuleyma) Burley and Morris (Sandra) Burley; eleven grandchildren; several great-grandchildren; four siblings, Joanne Jenck, Rodney Burley, Diane (Larry) Koch and Tom Burley; and many nieces, nephews and cousins. Visitation will be 3 to 6 p.m. Sunday, December 15th at Langeland Family Funeral Homes Burial & Cremation Services, 3926 S 9th St, Kalamazoo, MI 49009. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated 10:30 a.m. Monday, December 16th at St. Monica Catholic Church, 534 W. Kilgore, Kalamazoo, MI 49008. Burial will follow in Mt. Olivet Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the American Diabetes Association. The Burley family would also like to thank the caregivers and staff at Bickford of Portage for the care and attention they gave to John. To view John's personalized web page, please visit https://www.langelands.com