Chris Burns died at Kavanagh House on Monday, October 31, 2022, at the age of 65.
A visitation with family and friends will be held Tuesday, November 15th from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. at Brooks Funeral Care, 7975 University Blvd., Clive, Iowa.
Chris was born June 27, 1957, on the south side of Des Moines, Iowa to Frances and Don Burns. Chris said that she “barely” graduated from Lincoln High School in 1975.
Chris was a life-long learner and a jack of all trades. Chris loved animals of all kinds, having been a mom to cats, dogs, llamas, goats, rabbits, potbellied pigs, geese, ponies, peacocks, a mean turkey and more too numerous to mention.
Chris had a keen eye for good people. If she liked you, she liked you with her whole heart. If she ever learned that a person was mean to children, animals or older people she had to stop herself from kicking their ass.
Chris was a great letter writer. Her wonderful cards will be missed from the mailboxes of special friends. Chris enjoyed relating anecdotes from her life and work.
Chris met her life-long partner Annette Nelson at work at Methodist Hospital in 1987. They were married in their hearts long before being able to legally wed on November 13, 2010.
Chris is survived by her wife Annette; canine companions Lil, Pete and Willie; and Baya the Cockatoo. She will be missed by in-laws, out-laws, a niece, two nephews and a great-nephew.
Individuals wishing to make a memorial in Chris’s memory are invited to contribute to the pet rescue of their choice.
“I was supposed to spend the rest of my life with you. And then I realized … you spent the rest of your life with me. I smile because I know you loved me ‘til the day you went away… and will keep loving me… ‘til the day we’re together again.”