Dr Donald Stewart Burris, 1920–2018

On 31 January 2018, Dr Donald Stewart Burris died peacefully at the Marjorie Willoughby Snowden Memorial Hospice Home after a brief illness.

Stewart was the oldest child of Dr H.L. and Robina Burris. He was born and raised in Kamloops, spending some of his early school years at Vernon Preparatory School before graduating from high school in Kamloops. He obtained his BA at UBC in Vancouver and his medical degree at McGill University in Montreal. He then undertook his internship at Montreal General Hospital. In 1950, he began his postgraduate education in obstetrics and gynecology in London, England, and after completing this, returned to Kamloops in 1952 and joined the Burris Clinic.

Stewart loved the practice of medicine, and over the next 4 decades he delighted in providing medical care to the people of Kamloops and surrounding areas. With the assistance of many nurses, he was involved in the delivery of several thousand Kamloops residents.

Stewart had many and varied interests throughout his life. In his early years, he excelled in badminton, competing in national-level tournaments, and continued to play various racquet sports well into his 60s. Other sports he enjoyed were alpine and cross-country skiing in winter, and windsurfing in summer. He loved to spend time in his garden or in the woods at Shuswap Lake. Many hours were spent by Stewart reading all kinds of books, and he was particularly interested in local and provincial history. At various times, his civic interests included the Chamber of Commerce, the Rotary Club, and the Kamloops Museum. He also loved walking to and from work, and enjoyed talking to anyone he met on his route.

Stewart is survived by his wife Jean; sons Alan (Sherry) of Kamloops, and Gordon (Terri) of Calgary; and daughter-in-law, Adele, of Vancouver. He also leaves his sisters, Joan Churchill of Kelowna and Elspeth Lindsay of Sorrento, and his brother-in-law Roger Dickson of Knutsford. He will be missed by grandchildren Tim, Adam, Jamie-Lee, Christie, Jeff, and Sarah, and all his nieces and nephews. Stewart was predeceased by his son, John, his sister, Helen Dickson, his brother, John, and his nephew, John Churchill. 

The family would like to thank all those involved in Stewart’s care at Kamloops Seniors Village as well as at Royal Inland Hospital and the Hospice Home.
A service will be held at a date to be determined. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Stewart’s name to a charity of your choice.
—Alan Burris, MD
Kamloops