H.G. Burns Center endorsed

Naming of the H.G. Burns Center for Finance and Insurance was endorsed by the Clarion University of Pennsylvania Council of Trustees in recognition of the long-standing support and diverse contributions made by the Burns Family to enhance the overall quality of Clarion University.

The Burns Family has strong ties with Clarion University, beginning with the attendance and graduation in 1936 of Henry G. Burns, a former educator and leader in the region's insurance industry.

The Burns Family and business have established an endowed scholarship in memory of Henry for high achieving students in finance, insurance, and real estate, providing well over $16,000 annually in scholarships.

The Center for Finance and Insurance provides continuing education opportunities for the finance and insurance industries, including workshops, seminars and customized training. The Centers has also provided a variety of research services to professionals and organizations in the industry.

Attending Clarion during the Depression by selling sweet corn for his expenses, Henry G. Burns' industrious nature and a love of learning guided him through his life.

Hard work was part of Henry's life, growing up on the family farm in Clarion County. Working on the farm and for others throughout college, Henry would take the sweet corn he raised, load it in his car, and travel north as far as Bradford to sell his crop. In later years as he raised his family and entered other businesses, Henry continued to work on the farm as a hobby.

Henry, a 1936 graduate who died Jan. 16, 1996, never lost his love for education. "He was always involved in furthering his education," says son H. Eugene Burns, "and that's the reason the family is establishing the Finance and Insurance Center. Dad thought education was the keystone to one's success."

After graduating from Clarion, he taught school from 1935 to 1945 and was supervising principal of the Porter Township School from 1945 to 1948. Knowing that education leads to change, Henry worked for the consolidation of surrounding schools into the Redbank Valley School District.

Hard work and hard times continued from the Depression to the World War II homefront, but Henry managed to juggle the demands of farming, teaching, and taking care of his family. When his brother went off to World War II, Henry raised his two nephews. "He did so much for other people," says his wife, Mary Alice. "Even when he was teaching, he did a lot for his students and relatives."

Henry started in 1939 as a part-time insurance salesman and in 1948 left education for a full-time career in insurance with a new office in Clarion and an appointment as one of the area's first district managers of Equitable Life.

In 1963, Henry and son, Gene, founded Burns & Burns Associates Inc., now a regional insurance agency. Henry excelled in the insurance business through his love of people and was recognized in 1976 with induction into the Insurance Hall of Fame.

The Center will generate a crop of students and professionals that will continue the ideals of hard work and a love of learning. It will be a crop that is just as sweet as the corn Henry Burns sold many years ago to get to Clarion.