Obituary

Burton Grover, age 83, died on June 25, 2016 at Highgate Senior Living, where he had been living since 2013. Burt is survived by his wife of 56 years, Cathy Grover; his children Dan Grover, Steve Grover, Matt (Tom) Grover, Beth (Antonio) Grover; and his grandchildren Sarah Duato-Grover and Andrea Duato-Grover.

Burt was born on November 14, 1932 in Breckenridge, Minnesota and moved to Glyndon, Minnesota in 1943 when his father took over the family farm. He attended St. Olaf University and then the University of Minnesota where he eventually earned a PhD in statistics. He met his wife Cathy when they were both teaching high school outside of Minneapolis. They married on June 18, 1960 and later moved to Manitowoc, Wisconsin where they had all four of their children. They moved again to Bellingham, Washington in 1969 when Burt took a job as an education professor at Western Washington University. He remained at Western until his retirement in 1994.

Burt was very active throughout his life, having coached high school wrestling, basketball and football early in his teaching career. He was an avid runner and handball player until his retirement. When not outside, he enjoyed playing bridge, attending the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, listening to opera, reading, and developing a comprehensive genealogy of the Grover family. In his retirement, Burt and Cathy traveled extensively, with many trips throughout the United States and to Europe, Asia, South America and Mexico to visit their grandchildren. He was able to celebrate his 50th wedding anniversary with Cathy and children in Kona, Hawaii in 2010. Burt was a steady, guiding light for his family, and he will be missed.

A memorial service is planned for Saturday August 13 at 2:00pm at Central Lutheran Church in Bellingham 9925 N Forest St) with a reception to follow at Moles Farewell Tributes (2465 Lakeway Dr). In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the WWU Lutheran Campus Ministry (1720 Harris Ave. Bellingham, 98225 – www.lutherancampusministrywwu.com).

The family would like to extend a very special thank you to Tammy Hanson and all the staff at Highgate Senior Living in Bellingham, who took very good care of Burt in his final years.