July 13 1942 - June 29, 2024
Doug was born in Moline, Illinois, the only child of Albert Frederick and Isabelle Longfellow Burleigh.
He received a BA from Augustana College, Rock Island, Illinois. He began his career in the field of rehabilitation counseling upon receiving a Masters from the University of Iowa. He moved to Ohio where he met and married Judy Lengel, his spouse of 56 years. In their newly purchased red convertible, they headed to Buffalo, New York where Doug completed his PhD in Rehabilitation Counseling at the State University of New York at Buffalo. While in Buffalo, they became parents to their son Eric and moved to the Kansas City area where Doug took a job with the federal government.
Doug had a successful career with the government for 30 years. He retired as a Regional Commissioner for Regions V and VIl of the Rehabilitation Services Administration. His entire career was devoted to furthering the causes of the disability community. He served on many national committees and was involved with the working group that wrote the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Over the years, Doug was active in parish life at Holy Spirit Church. He was a lector, sang in the choir, served on the parish council, and started the social concerns committee.
Music and reading were his favorite pastimes. He loved listening to all kinds of music from classical, blue grass, rock and roll to blues. He was constantly looking for new authors to read. His tastes ran from history - stories of war and the effects on people - to mysteries and detective novels in the ilk of James Lee Burke, Michael Connelly and Daniel Silva.
Many summer vacations were spent at a family cabin on Lake Cathance, Maine, sailing on the lake, spending quiet time reading, and eating delicacies from the East Coast like lobster and wild blueberry pie. Doug and Judy traveled extensively across the U. S. combining visits to Eric out West and to his parents wintering in Florida.
He is survived by his wife Judy, his son Eric, his daughter-in-law Kim and his grandson Billy. Though his time to get to know his five-year-old grandson was short, it was filled with loving memories of reading story books, sharing secrets, chasing soccer balls, and receiving lots of "Billy hugs".
A Memorial Mass will be held to celebrate his life on July 17 at 11:00 am at Holy Spirit Catholic Church, 11300 W. 103rd S. in Overland Park, KS. Visitation prior to Mass will be at 10:00 am. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Holy Spirit Church or to KC Hospice, 9001 State Line Road #300, City, MO.
