Mary Therese “Tweet” Burik
Mary Therese “Tweet” Burik passed away on September 21 in Fairbanks at Pioneer Home after a brief illness at the age of 91.
Therese was born in Cleveland, Ohio on May 9, 1933, to Mary Cecilia Berilla and Frank Burik, joining an older brother, Edward. Her mother and father met and married in Cleveland. Both sets of grandparents were originally from Czechoslovakia and immigrated to the U.S. in late 1890’s.
Her father, Frank, passed away suddenly in 1935 when she was 2-years-old. Her mother moved Eddie and Therese back to Byesville, Ohio to live with her grandparents, where she lived until leaving home after graduating from high school in 1951 from St. Benedict School in Cambridge, Ohio. After graduation she moved to Washington, D.C. where she worked for the Federal Housing Administration as a secretary and staff assistant for 12 years.
In 1963, Therese volunteered for the Diocese of Fairbanks and arrived in Nulato to work at the mission school, but after a month moved to St. Mary’s Boarding School on the Andreafsky River, where she worked in the office, taught typing, helped in the dorms with younger children, and in the dining room/kitchen for four years. It was there that she began her love of fishing in Alaska’s streams and rivers.
In 1967 she moved to Nome to help with St. Joseph Catholic Church and assist in the creation of KNOM Radio Station. She held the position of Business and Financial Manager of KNOM and St. Joseph Church. Over the years she became friends to the many KNOM Jesuit Volunteers who worked at the station or supported the station by working at the Norton Sound hospital.
After “much thought and prayer” Therese decided to leave Nome and moved to Fairbanks in 1985 to serve as full-time executive secretary for Bishop Michael Kaniecki, S.J., where she served faithfully for 14 years. After a serious accident in her home, she retired in 1999 and remained in Fairbanks.
During her time in Fairbanks she volunteered in Stephen’s Ministry, monthly prison ministry, Meals on Wheels, visiting the homebound, active member of the St. Joseph Association, active member of Sacred Heart Cathedral, and enjoyed traveling around the state fishing and camping. She lived in Raven Landing prior to moving to Pioneer Home in 2021.
Therese is survived by her brother Edward Burik and his three children Mike (Leslie) Burik, Christine (Paul) Stamm and Linda (Tom) Vorisek. She leaves nieces and nephews and the many friends she has met along the way while working in the Diocese of Fairbanks since 1963.
A funeral mass was held for her on September 30, 2024 at Sacred Heart Cathedral. She will be buried at Mt. Calvary Parish Cemetery in Byesville, Ohio in a private ceremony at a later date.
Thank you to all who have cared for her along the way. A special thanks and appreciation to Pioneer Home and all who work there and treat residents like family, with love and care.
Donations may be made in the memory of M. Therese “Tweet” Burik to: Catholic Bishop of Northern Alaska 1316 Peger Rd, Fairbanks, AK 99709, or Sacred Heart Cathedral, 1300 Peger Rd, Fairbanks, AK 99709.
Online condolences may be made to the family at Blanchardfh.com