Jerome Burton Burnett

Jerome Burton "Jerry" Burnett was born March 10, 1923 in Riverside, the son of Jerome Burnett and Ruth Shumway Burnett; he passed away at his Thermal home April 13, 2015.

Jerry spent most of his childhood in Maracaibo, Venezuela, where his father worked as a petroleum geologist. When he was older he attended military school in Mississippi, and graduated from New Mexico Military Academy just in time for service in World War II.

He was an Army Technician 5th Grade, 413th Infantry Regiment in Europe, but while in hospital in Bristol, England met a charming employee of the BBC, Inin Clunies-Ross. After Jerry was shipped home they wrote to each other for the next few years, until he finally persuaded her to visit California. And she did, and they were married in 1949. They had sons Ross and Bruce, and twins Jeffrey and Philip, all of whom made Jerry proud.

One of the interesting moments in Jerry's later years was the reunion with his half brother and half sister, twins who had been given up for adoption in 1927. Don Brown and Beverly Brown Milligan and their families met "the other families" in 2000, and Don and Jerry formed an especially close bond and visits to the desert ranch were special occasions.

A multitalented man, Jerry ran Paul's Pioneer Date Garden for some time. He had a store in Indio, Custom Classics, selling and repairing radios and TVs for many years. He played tennis very well, and made sure his sons did the same. He was a rockhound and lapidarist. He belonged to a group whose members went up into the mountains searching for mushrooms, including Jerry's favorites, morels. Another hobby was placer gold mining; going out into the desert with a metal detector into gullies to find nuggets. When he decided to sell his lapidary equipment and gold, he learned the intricacies of web page designs and coding as an eighty-year-old attending college classes.

Jerry was predeceased by his sister Helen Burnett Sieger and brother Don Brown. He is survived by his wife Inin, sister Beverly Milligan, sons Ross (wife Karen), Bruce (wife Tammy), Jeffrey, and Philip; twelve grandchildren, two great grandchild, and numerous great nieces and nephews.

At Jerry's request there will be no funeral. Instead, a private celebration of life will be held at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Wounded Warrior Project.

Arrangements are by Forest Lawn, Coachella