My brother William Aaron Burnes lost his battle to cancer on March 13, 2006. He was a Commercial Fisherman in Alaska for 10 years. I give you this information for a reason, please read on!!
My husband Brady and our daughter decided to go golfing one day at the Cedar Hills golf course, just 3 months after my brother passed away. While on the course, Brady takes a few practice swings and is about to tee off on the first hole when a guy about 18 years of age who worked at the golf course said...
"hey, do you need a golf ball?"
Brady said "no I have plenty."
The 18 yr old responded, "here have this one",
and without further hesitation, the 18 yr old threw the golf ball to Brady. As Brady caught it, he saw the word "WILL" professionally printed on the ball. As he turned the ball around he saw a picture of a bear with a fish in it's mouth with the word "Alaska" printed below the image. Brady was speechless and overwhelmed at that moment because he knew that my brother Will was still with us, and he wanted it to be known.
I often wonder who that boy was, and why he felt so impressed to give the ball to Brady even though he refused his offer. I also wonder where that ball came from in the first place. Was this a ball my brother had professionally designed while in Alaska and somehow through his hands, it made it back to us? I wish I knew. Someday I Will.
When Brady returned home from golfing, he placed the golf ball in my hand and relayed this miraculous encounter to me and I knew what I was suppose to do; I needed to find our ancestors and continue Will's work. At first I thought "this is impossible", but realized "with His help, I can do this", and began to mend my thoughts of inadequacy and started researching. It was very difficult at first, in fact, the only form of genealogy I had was a restaurant napkin that Will wrote a few notes on before his passing; something I will treasure forever! I knew nothing about my ancestors, how to begin, or how to build our family tree, but I knew I had a responsibility, and Will would guide me; I knew this!
For the past 7 years, the "Will" Ball has been in my office with an assurance that my brother is close by. Today, we have over 7,000
BURNES CLAN
ancestors that we are proud of and feel a strong connection to because of Will. I picked up where he left off in his research and I am honored to be the vessel for his great work.
More Burnes Info can be found at www.myburnesclan.com
William Aaron Burnes
May 29, 1967 - March 13, 2006
Semper Fi (Always Faithful)
William Burnes - US Marines - 3rd Recon Battalion
William Burnes as a Commercial Fisherman in Alaska for 10 years.
William Burnes and long time girlfriend, Joell Sweeney. She stayed by his side, every second, until the end.
My favorite picture of us. Brady & Sarah Heiner on the Left,
William and Joell on the Right. September 17, 2003.
William Aaron Burnes' Obituary