Self-Written Obituary for Carla S. Burchers

Carla Sue Burchers, 58, of Tripoli, died Friday, February 9, following a long 

and courageous battle with cancer.

Survivors include her beloved husband Tom and sons T.C. and Marcus E., all

of Tripoli; mother, Marilyn Kane of Pompano Beach, Fla.; three brothers,

Kevin Kane of Cedar Rapids, Michael R. Kane of New York City, and Rusty

Kane of New York City; and a niece, Leslie Ann Dutcher of San Francisco.

Also surviving are her brother-in-law, James Burchers; nephew, Austin

Burchers; and former sister-in-law, Mary Kaye Burchers; all of Cedar

Rapids.

She was preceded in death by her four grandparents and stepgrandfather;

father-in-law, Thomas B. Burchers; father, Carl Kane; and mother-in-law,

Margaret Burchers.

Carla was born April 17, 1948, to Carl and Marilyn Kane in Cedar Rapids.

She attended Kenwood, Wright and Franklin schools, graduating from

Washington High School in 1966.  Throughout school, Carla was involved in

the band program, having started the flute in third grade.  She also was

active in Camp Fire Girls, participating in year-round activities and

attending Camp Hitaga every summer.

After graduation, Carla worked as a long distance operator for

Northwestern Bell for two years.  She also was a camp counselor in nature

and archery at Camp Hitaga for three summers.

Carla attended Coe College, graduating in May 1972 with a bachelor's

degree in music.  She married Tom on June 11, 1972, and they moved to

Algona for three years.

Tom and Carla then moved to Tripoli in 1975, where they made their home

ever since.  Carla was employed by Tripoli Community Schools as an

elementary/junior high band director since January 1979.  She also worked

as a part-time elementary band director at Wapsie Valley from 1984 to

2001.

Carla's life revolved around music, that of her personal family at home

and her extended family at school.  She played flute in the Waterloo

Municipal Band, starting with the Iowa Bandmasters performance in 1994

and continuing for 13 consecutive summers.  Her husband played bari sax

with the band since 1991 and was also involved with the Northeast Iowa

Big Band since 1975.

Her sons both started music and drama early in life and continued through

college.  T.C. played saxophone in four different bands at Wartburg

College.  Marcus played oboe and English horn in three bands and sang in

four choirs at Luther College.  Carla's family traveled to many of those

performances, locally, throughout the Midwest and to New York's Carnegie

Hall twice.

Throughout the years, Carla took great pride in the hundreds of band

beginners she started at Tripoli Community Schools, nurturing them

through the early years and preparing them for solo contests and honor

bands.  In 2002, she was the recipient of the Northeast Iowa Bandmasters'

Phil Sehmann Excellence in Education Award for elementary teaching.

Carla was a member of the Northeast Iowa Bandmasters and Iowa Bandmasters

associations since 1972.  She also was a member of the Tripoli Education

Association, NEIEU, ISEA and NEA since 1979.