William Edward Burns

William Edward Burns, 74, died Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2023, in Birmingham, Ala.

Born October 15, 1948, in Spartanburg, S.C., he was the son of the late John Milton Burns, Sr. and Launa Harris Burns, and the husband of Susan Landers Burns.

He graduated from Lafayette High School in Lexington, KY. He graduated from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1970 with a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, where he was a member of the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps. After completing additional training at the Naval Nuclear Power School, he served on the U.S.S. James Madison (SSBN-627) and as an instructor at the Submarine 1st Generation Westinghouse (S1W) prototype reactor at the Naval Reactors Facility outside Idaho Falls, ID.

After receiving an honorable discharge from the U.S. Navy in 1976, he joined Georgia Power in Atlanta, GA. as a nuclear engineer and later transferred to Southern Nuclear Operating Company in Birmingham, AL in 1988. He retired in 2014 after holding various management positions in nuclear licensing and probabilistic risk assessment. Following his retirement, he was a devoted husband, selflessly caring for his wife Susan throughout her struggle with Alzheimer’s disease.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his wife, Susan Landers Burns, and his brother, John Milton Burns, Jr.

Survivors include his son, Michael Edward Burns and his wife Sarah Bryant Burns of Arlington, VA; sisters Patricia Burns Seifert of Tavernier, FL, and Launa Christine Burns of Columbus, N.C.; five nieces and nephews and four nephews.

Visitation begins at 11 a.m. on Friday, February 3, 2023, at Little Davenport Funeral Home and a graveside service is scheduled for 1 p.m. Friday, Feb. 3, 2023, at Alta Vista Cemetery in Gainesville, GA.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the American Diabetes Association or the Alzheimer’s Association.

Little & Davenport Funeral Home and Crematory, 355 Dawsonville Hwy. Gainesville, GA 30501, is in charge of the arrangements.

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