Thomas Edward Burke

Thomas Edward “Tom” Burke, a Marriott Corporation executive, and a consultant to the Nixon White House and Fortune 200 companies, passed away April 26, 2025.  He was 94.

The scrappy Irishman was born in Akron, Ohio July 29, 1930.

Tom joined Marriott in 1969 and rose to become senior vice president and assistant to the president, Bill Marriott, Jr.  Tom represented the company with Wall Street security analysts, and headed Corporate Affairs and Government Relations.

During his tenure at Marriott, Tom became close to President Nixon’s administration.  He was part of a select group of corporate officers called together for counsel on key policies.  But Tom declined a request from then Attorney General John Mitchell to join the Committee to Re-Elect the President.  This group, later derided as “CREEP,” gave rise to the Watergate scandal that landed many in prison, and brought down the presidency.  This “road not taken” would have been a life-changer for Tom and his family.

In the early 1980s, Tom founded a consulting practice to advise CEOs/CFOs in their communications with                  Wall Street. He helped steer Superior Oil through a proxy fight and its merger with Mobil Oil, and went on to serve BankAmerica, Cigna, Delta Air Lines, Pacific Gas and Electric, United Technologies and others.

Tom passionately defended companies against slanted news media, taking on the New York Times,               Washington Post, NBC, and others. His 1984 speech, “The Difference Between News and Truth,” was circulated nationally in “Vital Speeches of the Day.”

Tom is a former chair of The Seminar, the premier organization of senior communications and public affairs executives.  He also is a former chair of the Advisory Council for the College of Communications at the University of Florida, and served on the Board of the Arts Center of Coastal Carolina.  A lifelong golfer, Tom was a 48-year member of Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland.

Tom was drafted out of college and proudly served in the U.S. Army from 1951 to 1953.  He edited newspapers for the 1st Armored Division in Texas and for the 43rd Infantry Division in Germany during the Korean War.  He later graduated from American University.

Tom’s loving wife of 37 years, Laurie, was originally a client, and later partnered with him in his financial consulting practice.  She proudly continues as the “Burke” in The Burke Company.

Tom’s highest honor and greatest role has been that of “Dad” to a daughter and four sons:  Nancy Burke Harmon (Ben) of Richmond, Virginia; Tom, Jr., who preceded his Dad in death; Timothy Paul (Chrissie) of Williamsburg, Virginia; Daniel Patrick, of Charlotte, North Carolina; and David Gerard (Terri) of Santa Rosa Beach, Florida.

Tom leaves six dearly-loved grandchildren, Jud (Lauren), Mary Kate (Mike), Mandy (Tessa), Josh (Annlei), Sean, and Brendan (Khusbu); five great grandchildren; a “sixth kid” in former daughter-in-law, Mary Ruth; a favorite nephew and niece, Charlie Crowley (Mary) and Mary Ellen Huesken (Rich); and a magnificent extended family.

Tom and Laurie made their home in Hilton Head, South Carolina.  Visitation will be from 5 to 7 PM on Tuesday, May 27 at Sauls Funeral Home in Bluffton, with a prayer service at 6 PM.  Tom’s Funeral Mass will be at St. Andrew Chapel in Bluffton, on Wednesday, May 28 at 10:30 AM, followed by interment at Beaufort National Cemetery in Beaufort, SC, at 1 PM.  A Celebration of Life will be held in Bluffton from 3:30 until 6:30 PM at Belfair, where he and Laurie built their first Lowcountry home.

In lieu of flowers, the family would be honored by contributions to the Mary Ley Burke Scholarship created in honor of Tom’s mother at St. Sebastian Parish School in Akron: https://www.stsebastian.org/foundation/funds-and-endowments . At the end of his long and lucky life, Tom often declared the scholarship for “Gram’s Kids” to be the “best thing I’ve ever done.”