Bo'ness mourns railway's John
TRIBUTES have been paid to the late "irreplaceable" John Burnie, a leading light at Bo'ness and Kinneil Steam Railway, whose funeral took place in Dunfermline yesterday (Thursday).
The dad-of-two, a mechanical engineer, died on November 20 of a heart attack.
He was 63.
John was instrumental in establishing the Scottish railway museum in Bo'ness and was involved in the Bo'ness Heritage Trust and Bo'ness Development Trust.
He is survived by wife Ann (60) and children Jenny (29) and Andrew (27).
Said Jenny: "He was a great family man, really funny, honest, passionate about his conservation work.
''He was a brilliant dad to have around as he could turn his hand to anything."
The family have been overwhelmed by the fond memories shared with them since John's death.
Born in Glasgow, a love of steam engines was in John's blood, with him travelling the UK's railways together with dad Alf, a Rolls Royce engineer who also worked on wartime Spitfire engines.
John first volunteered for the Scottish Railway Preservation Society as a teenager, with sleepovers in the train carriages and stove-cooked breakfasts saving on a fare home!
Fellow railway volunteer David Stirling said his great friend got through an enormous amount in life and was always willing to help.
He added: "The fact that the museum is Scotland's national railway museum is an asset for Bo'ness and it was John that got it sorted, focused and recognised. We will, as far as we can, continue the work he started."
The Burnie family lived initially just a street away from Falkirk High railway station and then close to Dunfermline station.
After John took early retirement as a Longannet power station shift charge engineer around seven years ago, he devoted even more time to his SRPS and conservation work.
Said SRPS chairman John Evans: "There is no way any one person could put in the amount of time and energy he did, so he was in the true sense of the word irreplaceable."
John was a fan of Monty Python and classical music, and his love of classical history saw several family holidays to Italy.
Last spring's trip to New York naturally included a Grand Central Station tour and transport museum visit.
editorial@journalandgazette.co.uk
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Saturday 04 February 2012
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