Brenda "Bj" Joyce Burns

Known as Mom, Grandma, Wife, Aunt Bj, big Sister, Trusted Realtor: in all relationships she was caring, fun and generous. But in all of life’s challenges she was a formidable Force of Nature. From the moment she was born, she exuded energy and charisma, drawing the attention of strangers as well as friends when she entered the room. Somehow, we all knew life was about to become more interesting and fun because of her presence.

The oldest child of Bill and Dorothy Reynolds Williams, she spent her first six years in Fort Worth, Texas before the family moved to Birmingham, Alabama in 1954. For her fifth birthday, she asked for a baby sister and she got her wish. Five years later she asked for a baby brother for Christmas and was granted that request as well. She spent many happy hours organizing activities for the neighborhood kids, toting Billy Jr on her hip and judging doll costume contests for Pam and her friends.

She loved high school, finding a new rhythm in life by immersing herself into piano recitals, various clubs, marching as a drum majorette in the band, reporting the school news weekly on a local radio station, competing in the Junior Miss Alabama contest, leading the singing at church camp. She lived in a whirlwind the entire four years—and took her family along for the joyous ride.

Shortly after her freshman year at Troy State University, she met and married Warrant Officer Leon Edling who was stationed at the nearby Fort Rucker. Their first son, Leon Keith, Jr, was born in the Spring of 1968.

Bj conceived again, this time with twin boys, Kenneth and Kevin. This time, however, it was a difficult pregnancy. She fought to keep them in her womb as long as possible and the boys were born two months prematurely in February 1971, each weighing less than three pounds and though they received the best care available at that time, after many weeks of struggle, only Kevin survived. It was an irreconcilable loss.

When Bj and Leon eventually divorced in 1974, she moved with her two boys to Naples, Florida to be closer to her family. She settled in as a single mom, built a successful insurance agency and even found time to coach Keith’s soccer team, naming them “Bj’s Bears”. Even though she had never played soccer in her life, the team had some success and many great moments of fun!

When her parents divorced in 1980, her brother, sister and mother all individually moved to Colorado in the months that followed. Bj sold her house and moved to Colorado Springs with Keith and Kevin the Fall of 1981, driving the U-Haul truck herself across the thousands of miles. Just before making the detour to see her grandparents in Fort Worth, she stopped at a gas station to don a dress, high heels and the fur coat she’d bought for her new life in Colorado.

The following year, while selling computers she barely knew how to turn on, she met and fell in love with her soulmate: Terry Burns. Between them, they brought four boys to their new family and began a roller-coaster ride of having four teenagers in the home. Life became more unpredictable and Bj was thankful during those years for Terry’s calm demeanor!

After twenty years of various jobs and businesses she formed with mixed success, Bj found her perfect career in 1993, when she joined the sales team at US Home. Her mentor, Sue Miller, patiently taught her everything she knew and in just three years, she was honored as the #1 New Home Sales Consultant among all the builders in the USA. Though she thrived in her new success, ever the entrepreneur, she left the company to start her own business as a Realtor in 2000. She became so successful over the next ten years that she was invited to join the newly formed and prestigious Platinum Group of Realtors.

The stress of her career during the “Great Recession” following the banking collapse took its toll and Bj was stopped short by a massive stroke in 2010. Though she fought valiantly to get her life back, she never fully succeeded. When her beloved Terry—the man she called her “rock”—died unexpectedly of surgical complications May 21, she lived a mere eight weeks more.

She is survived by her four boys and their wives: Keith and Mayumi Edling, Kevin and Stacey Edling, Steven and Nancy Burns and James Burns and Jessica Leatherman as well as nine grandchildren – Sami, Jamie, Dylan, Alex, Heidi, Erica, Audrey, Scarlett and Sterling.

Please join the family on July 28 at 10:30 a.m. for a Celebration of her life at Swan-Law Funeral Home 501 N. Cascade Ave.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a charitable donation in Bj’s name to the Bob and Doris Reynolds CSU Scholarship. In order to do so, copy and paste the link under the "Donations" tab at the bottom of this page and click in the right hand corner "Give Now", select the donation amount you would like to contribute, and search for "Bob and Doris Reynolds Memorial Scholarship Endowment (60635)."