Robert Eugene Burdge

Robert Eugene Burdge, age 80, of Collierville, Tennessee passed away on Tuesday, December 13, 2022. Robert (Bob) was born in Omaha, Nebraska. He graduated from Benson High School and Omaha University where he was the Distinguished Military Graduate. He entered the Air Force and was stationed at multiple bases in the southwest and along the west coast. After leaving the Air Force, Bob joined the Nebraska Air National Guard where he had the opportunity to be the Weapons System Officer in the RF-4C Phantom, the plane he had always wanted to fly. He retired as Lt. Colonel.

He and his wife, Lynn (Beckman) Burdge, met in Omaha, married in Wisner, NE and lived in Omaha until 1995 when they were transferred to Tennessee with Merry Maids, a ServiceMaster company. In addition to the military, Bob retired from Mutual of Omaha as the Sales Promotion manager; was a small business owner; and retired as a sales and account manager for franchises at ServiceMaster Restoration Services. Bob's hobbies included travel adventures with Lynn, golf, fly fishing, Nebraska Cornhusker sports, especially football; reading, working in his shop and spending time with family and friends. He was active in his church including singing in the choir and going on mission trips to Recife, Brazil and Yetebon, Ethiopia. His favorite part of those trips was spending time with the children and making them laugh.

Bob loved his God, his family, and his country; was a great friend; kind, honorable and fair; had a generous heart and an ability to make people laugh with his quick wit and great jokes.

In addition to his wife, Lynn, Bob leaves one daughter, Christina (Matthew Pfeifer Sr.) and three grandchildren, Tristan Pfeifer, Matthew Pfeifer Jr., and Taylor Pfeifer, all of Arlington, Tennessee; cousins, Janee Dlugosh (Larry) of Roca, Nebraska, Chuck (Barbara) Benda of Ord, Nebraska, and William (Jolene) Burdge of Billings, Montana and numerous other relatives and friends. Parents were Richard Burdge and Betty Burdge of Omaha, NE, both deceased. Military Honors will take place on Friday, January 20 at 2:30pm at West TN Veterans Cemetery 4000 Forest Hill Irene Rd. Memphis, TN 38125. There will be a Memorial service on Saturday, January 21 at 11:00 AM at Faith Presbyterian Church 8816 Poplar Pike, Germantown, TN 38138 to be followed by lunch. In lieu of flowers, memorials can be donated to Faith Presbyterian Church, 8816 Poplar Pike, Germantown, TN 38138; Wounded Warrior Project; or Tunnel2Towers Foundation.