LYNN ― A memorial service will be held Saturday for Tom Bourke, a staple of the St. Mary’s School community who watched over the school’s grounds for decades.
Bourke, a retired North Shore Community College professor and dean, died from pancreatic cancer in January. While his family was unable to hold a memorial at the time due to the pandemic, his wife, Madeline, said that they are looking forward to honoring him.
“He cared deeply about his family, about his friends and about his students,” she said. “He cared a lot about other people.”
Tom and Madeline Bourke met in eighth grade, when they were students together at St. Mary’s. They began dating at 16 and were married at age 21. After Tom Bourke graduated from Providence College, the couple moved to Michigan, where he attended graduate school at the University of Michigan, but they returned to Lynn soon after.
While Bourke began teaching at NSCC, he also returned to working at St. Mary’s, teaching for one year and working on the grounds. As he got older, he kept this up, shifting to doing the work a few times a week on a volunteer basis.
Father Brian Flynn, pastor at St. Mary’s Church, said that he was struck by Bourke’s hard work, but also his kindness and generosity. He said that on occasion, while maintaining the grounds, Bourke would come upon a person who had slept on the property overnight.
“He would always treat them with great respect and listen to their stories,” Flynn said.
Jessica Tully, Bourke’s daughter, said that her father was very generous, and in his position as dean of student services at NSCC, he was in a unique position to lend his support to a diverse range of students.
“I can’t tell you the number of … notes and letters he had from people thanking him for the impact he had on them, finding help with addiction issues or getting jobs, just all over the place,” she said.
Bourke was also passionate about sports, from playing football as a student to watching the Patriots, as well as running, canoeing, hiking, and playing golf.
“I’ve heard a lot of stories from fellow golfers how his passion for golf would make for a very interesting game,” Madeline said. “He enjoyed the game but took it seriously, in that he was competitive. They have a lot of funny stories about Tom golfing. That was his passion after football.”
Bourke still made time for his family. Tully said that he enjoyed spending time with his grandchildren, including her triplet daughters and her brother Eric’s two children, and enjoyed traveling with Madeline and their family.
Through it all, he continued giving back to the community, including his work at St. Mary’s, which he continued until around six months before his death.
“I think it was his therapy,” Tully said.
A memorial mass will be held for Bourke at St. Mary’s Church at 11 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 18.
