Will Burpee passed away on Jan. 7, 2024 – just over a month after turning 69. When he relocated to Springfield to attend Sangamon State University, he carried with him a lifelong passion for writing (and also for the New England Patriots). As befitting a person whose middle name was Byron, Will was a keen and sensitive observer of human nature, including his own. He had the sensibility of a journalist and also penned feature articles that were published in the Illinois Times. His Take One features were perhaps his major output of his later years – lyrical essays that yielded his insights into many of the calamities, crises and successes of the later 20th and early 21st centuries … with an emphasis on popular culture and politics. Although he never launched an online blog, Will regularly emailed his Take One essays to a widespread and appreciative audience.
A lover of public speaking, he had been a disc jockey at one point and later became a dedicated member of the Mature Mob (both writing and performing in their annual reviews), the local news junkies group and several local writing groups.
He was proud of the community service he provided as a crossing guard for the public schools of District 186. He enjoyed trivia competitions and had a rare knowledge of many facets, including sports, American history and vintage radio and television shows. Will routinely read multiple newspapers and collected Spanish language magazines so that he could learn to read Spanish.
Will was a member of Abraham Lincoln Unitarian Universalist Church since 1987. Will sang in the adult choir not only during Sunday services but also Christmas Eve and interfaith services. He was fond of the church’s game nights, Circle Suppers and other social activities. He also shared some of his original compositions during the coffee hours here. Additionally, Will often showed up for social justice rallies to show his support for Marriage Equality, protesting bans that targeted immigrants, police violence against people of color and reproductive freedom.
If I were to describe his personal approach to life, I would choose the midground between “no frills” and no pretenses. I shared many a meal and conversation with him during the past 21 years, and it was a privilege. I do not recall ever hearing him speak anything unkind about another person, except perhaps for a few prominent politicians, but can you really blame him? He also strove for the middle path, to balance solitude with companionship. When I visited him in the hospital, he was generally cheerful and upbeat no matter the diagnosis. As he aged, he continued to push himself to show up and participate – he was certainly not a recluse. He will be missed.
Rev. Martin Woulfe
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This article appears in Remembering 2024.
