John Charles Burton

May 10, 1954-May 16, 2009
Charlie Burton, age 55, passed away at his home in Centennial, Colorado at 9:30 p.m. Saturday, May 16, after a long battle with cancer. He was surrounded by loving friends and family during the weeks leading up to his death.
Charlie was born on May 10, 1954 in Denver, Colorado, to Frank Leaming Burton and Martha Joann Haines Burton. He was the youngest child in the family. Charlie was preceded in death by his father, Frank Burton. He is survived by his wife, Fran Burton, his sons, Lucas and Will Burton; his mother, Martha Burton; and his siblings, Warren Burton (Alison), Nancy Hart, and Barbara Sihombing (Effendi); his sister-in-law, Bee Gee Brem; and a wealth of nieces and nephews, cousins, aunts and uncles, as well as very dear friends, Judy and Chris La Forge and their daughter Anna, Mark Hawkins, Jodi Foster, and many others who each know in their hearts how much Charlie loved them and how much he valued their love. All of these friends and family were a huge part of his life, and gave him great joy.
He attended Arapahoe High School in Littleton (now Centennial), graduating in 1972. Many of his high school friends remained close to him throughout his life. He later went to Colorado State University in Fort Collins, from which his elder son, Luke, graduated last year.
Franny and Charlie were married in Denver on May 9, 1983, and just celebrated their 26th wedding anniversary, as well as Charlie's 55th birthday, a week before his death.
Charlie worked as a computer information security engineer for a division that was first part of United Airlines, Galileo, then Cendant and finally Travelport.
Charlie had an extremely rich, full, and rewarding life. After high school, he took an extended road trip around the U.S. with friends. Later, he traveled in the Andes of South America, through remote areas of Mongolia, to China, Hong Kong, England, and Australia. He enjoyed camping (including snow camping) in the beautiful high mountains of Colorado, and being actively involved as a Boy Scout Leader with his sons' troops. He also enjoyed being actively involved in the annual United Nations Seminar and other international groups and events. Music was always a joy for Charlie, and he frequently attended concerts in the area with his wife Fran, sister Nancy, sister-in-law Bee Gee, and Jodi (the daughter he never had) and her son Zach.
Charlie's life was full of love and friendship, humor and companionship. Every year at Thanksgiving, his home was packed with relatives and friends enjoying the great food and companionship of the day. His co-workers were amazing: good, generous friends who brightened his days.
In place of a public service, there will be an informal party in Charlie's honor. Friends and family are welcome to come to his home (6811 South Downing Circle West, Centennial, Colorado 80122) on Saturday, May 30, noon to 4:00PM, to gather together for a backyard celebration of his life. Feel free to bring any contribution of food or drink, but none is required. Charlie wished to have all his loved ones gathered together in a pleasant, positive environment to remember the good times and to continue to support each other in the future.
The family would like to thank each of the Porter Hospital Hospice staff members, and the organization as a whole, for everything that was done to make this difficult time a little easier. Anyone caring to make a contribution in his name may do so by supporting Porter Hospital Hospice , the United Nations Seminar , or The Denver Area Council of Boy Scouts of America.
We hope that each person reading this will remember Charlie's generous, caring, serene, humorous, and upbeat attitude, and strive to incorporate a bit of that into his or her own life. His last words, when asked how he was feeling, were, "Pretty Good, Considering."