Colleen Burns

1938 - 2026

Colleen grew up in Whangarei. In 1964, with husband John she trained as a Salvation Army officer. They served in a number of appointments and her Christian faith was very important to her throughout her life and was an essential part of the person she was. She sponsored a number of Children through Tear Fund and The Salvation Army Cherish a Child programmes. Receiving and sending letters to"her children" gave her a lot of pleasure.

She was a very good shorthand typist and has remarkable testimonials from her employers. She also spent many hours volunteering as a typist for a number of community and sporting groups.

Colleen was very skilled at sewing and knitting and besides creating beautiful clothes for her four children and husband she knitted more than 100 Teddy Bears for Operation Cover Up. She loved her garden and she quickly transformed the many properties they moved into. She also loved sharing fruit and vegetables she had grown with others .

For the last 20 years Colleen had an Essential Tremor. Her right hand was significantly affected. This did not deter her from producing many very good watercolour paintings. Almost every week someone in the church received a  hand painted Birthday or Greeting card with an appropriate verse carefully printed inside .

A quiet lady who always thought of others before herself.