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Va. jeweler Dorothy Burke dies
Dorothy Lee Thrift Burke, who founded Burkes Jewelers in Virginia’s Northern Neck with her husband Fred, has died at the age of 90.
Kilmarnock, Va.--Dorothy Lee Thrift Burke, who founded Burkes Jewelers in Virginia’s Northern Neck with her husband Fred, has died at the age of 90.
The daughter of the late Hiram H. and May L. Thrift, Burke graduated from high school in 1941 and then attended Smithdeal Massey Business in 1942, at the advent of World War II. In 1942, she accepted a job at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, and was among a group of women promoted through the ranks and accountable directly to the U.S. Treasury Department.
In November 1954, she met and married her husband, Fred Burke.
She worked for Northern Neck Mutual Fire Association of Virginia for more than a decade before she and her husband, who was Fred Sr. by that time following their birth of their son, purchased a jewelry store in Kilmarnock in 1969.
They both devoted a major part of their time to expanding the business, which is still open today as Burkes Fine Jewelers and operated by the Burkes’ son, Fred Jr., and his wife Karen.
She is survived by her husband, Fred Sr.; son, Fred Jr. and his wife, Karen; one granddaughter, Courtney; one grandson, Justin and his wife Melissa; a great grandson, Finley Rhodes Burke; and one sister, Laura Headley.
Memorial contributions can be made to Irvington Baptist Church, P.O. Box 417, Irvington, VA 22480.
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