Lt. Col. Peter J. Burns, Jr., U.S. Army (ret), 87, of Phoenix, AZ, and Moline, IL, died Wednesday, September 2, 2015, at his home in Phoenix. Services will be 10 a.m. Monday, September 14, 2015, at Wheelan-Pressly Funeral Home, Rock Island, IL. Visitation will be from 9 - 10 a.m. Monday at the funeral home. Burial will be at Rock Island National Cemetery, Arsenal Island, where military honors will be presented. Memorials may be made to the American Heart Association.

Peter was born on January 12,1928, in Englewood, N.J., first son of Peter J. and Alice Corriston Burns. He married Harriet F. Schmidt on March 10, 1951, in Riverside Church, New York City. She preceded him in death on December 8, 1989.

Pete graduated 1947 from Cliffside Park High School where he served on the student council, played football and was selected as the "Best Looking Guy." His future wife Harriet was his high school sweetheart.

Peter graduated with a bachelor's degree from the University of Nebraska in Omaha. He joined the U.S. Army in 1949 where he would spend the next 30 years, retiring as a Lt. Col. in 1979. During his time in the U.S. Army, Peter served in the Korean and Vietnam Wars and had assignments around the world from Japan, Taiwan and Thailand to Germany. He received the Purple Heart in 1966. He spent the last seven years of his military career at Rock Island Arsenal: five years as an inspector general at theU.S. Army Armament Readiness Command with a final two as the Rock Island Arsenal's deputy commander.

Upon retiring from the U.S. Army, Peter worked twelve years as a facilities manager for the First National Bank of the Quad Cities, overseeing the construction of five branch banks and the installation of the first ATM's; he retired in 1991 to focus on community service.

Peter was a member of the Rock Island Arsenal Golf Club, Milan Rifle Club, Rock Island V.F.W. Post 1303, Moline American Legion Post 246, Vietnam Veterans of America Ch 299, Moline Elks, Rock Island and Moline Conservation Clubs, Ducks Unlimited, was an Illinois hunter safety instructor, past board member and vice president of the Quad Cities Conservation Alliance, and former member of Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Moline.

A beloved man is deceased, and left to mourn his departure are his children, Pamela Burns (Stephen) Yeamans, Austin, Texas; and Peter J. Burns III, Phoenix, Arizona; grandchildren Michael Z. Burns, Sloan Burns Smith and Lizette Burns Smith; sister Mary Alice "Mickey" (James) Damurjian, Englewood, N.J., and brother Robert T. (Nancy) Burns, Alpine, N.J.

He was preceded in death by his wife and parents as well as his sister and brother-in-law, Ann Carol (Frank) Rogers, Whiting, N.J., and his brother's wife, Anne.

Peter was a gentleman and a fighter in service to others, a responsible straight arrow with a fierce presence who cared for family, friends, and the seclusion of nature and wildlife. He had a good life and a big heart.