Patrick Owen Burns ’59

Patrick Owen Burns ’59 died on September 28, 2017. He entered Dartmouth from Fordham Preparatory School, majored in government and was a member of Delta Upsilon. He was president of the class of 1959 in his first two years and, in his senior year, an officer of the Undergraduate Council and a member of Palaeopitus. Following graduation Patrick earned a law degree from Harvard. In 1963 he became associated with Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy in New York City as a litigator and served several pro bono causes, including the Head Start program, the ACLU and the Warren Commission’s investigation of the assassination of President John Kennedy. In 1969, after leaving Milbank, he ran unsuccessfully for election to the New York City council. Patrick continued to devote his energies to social and economic causes, including the Interracial Council for Business Opportunity and a minority enterprise small business company. He served as a governor of the Small Business Investor Co. and testified before the U.S. Congress regarding capital formation and its capacity to impact social change. He was an active member of the Council of Foreign Relations. He also served on the boards of several medical facilities. Patrick’s professional and volunteer service continued through his retirement in 2011. When health issues caused him and his wife of 50 years, Barbara, to move to Sheffield, Massachusetts, he became active in a number of nonprofit organizations in that area. He leaves Barbara, children Patrick Jr. and Elizabeth and five grandchildren.