Lula Frances Moss Burgess

Centenarian Lu Burgess (Lula Frances Moss) was a depression baby, born on April 24, 1924 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Her worldview reflected her childhood memories of helping those less fortunate. She grew up in Alexandria, Virginia and enjoyed its proximity to the nation’s capital and all it had to offer. Excelling in the arts, Lu was a drum majorette, artist, writer, and dancer but was best renowned as an actress. She held an honorary lifetime membership with the Alexandria Little Theater celebrating her stellar acting career.

When WWII intervened, she left her work with the Chinese embassy and her position as a ballroom dancer to become a USO Director in Austria. There she met and married Clyde C. “Cliff” Burgess. Through their life in the military and later to visit their family and friends, they traveled extensively around the globe. Often those travels included stations near her hometown and her sister Sara Jean Dienelt and nephew John Dienelt and his wife Susan.

She had four children with Cliff: Katherine, Charles, Beverly, and Joseph. Beverly passed away from the terminal illness cystic fibrosis when she was 12 years old. In order to learn more about her daughter’s condition and to provide her with the best care possible, she pursued a career in science and became a nurse at age 45. Her nursing school friends, Debbie Milan Beeson and Kay Hamada remained close lifelong friends. Upon graduating from school, she worked at Jess Parrish Memorial Hospital in Titusville, Good Samaritan in West Palm Beach and Holmes Regional in Melbourne, Florida. She became an oncology nurse and frequently worked the night shift. She published several poems in nursing journals that resonated with caregivers worldwide.

When her hearing deteriorated, she left nursing and focused on solutions for her hearing loss. She recovered her hearing when she became one of the first Cochlear implant recipients in the U.S. She lived happily on Pine Branch Drive in Melbourne, Florida for more than 30 years and deeply loved her life and friends in that neighborhood. After her husband Cliff passed away, she moved with her son Joseph to Jupiter and Wellington, close to her son Charles and his family, before eventually moving back to Melbourne. Ever social and fun-loving, she celebrated her 100th birthday with friends this year. Remarkably, she continued to maintain close, meaningful relationships largely through telephone text messaging with friends and family across the country.

She passed away peacefully in her sleep the morning of December 20, 2024 at Orlando Health Sebastian River Hospital in Sebastian, Florida. She is deeply missed by her children (Katherine, Charles and Joseph) grandchildren (Maria Vanessa, Thomas, Stephen, Alexandra and Ernest), great grandchildren (Liam, Alena and Avi) and a community of those who loved her.

A memorial service with the family will be held at a later date and location (TBD). In lieu of flowers, please send donations to Hope Children’s Home:11415 Hope International Drive, Tampa, FL 33625, (813) 961-1214.