Philip H. Burch passed away on July 21, 2916 in Skillman, N.J at the age of 86.
Phil was born on February 16, 1930 and raised in “The Island” neighborhood of Trenton, one block from the Delaware River. He received a B.S. in Engineering from Rutgers University in 1951. Shortly after graduating, Phil married Rosemary Kahny of Princeton, N.J.; they were married for 20 years.
He served his country as a lieutenant in the US Air Force in Korea, then returned to school on the GI bill, receiving a Ph.D in Political Science from Rutgers University in 1959. In 1962, Professor Burch joined the Center for Government Services at Rutgers University. During his 38-year career there, he performed research in many areas related to public policy in New Jersey, including transportation, public health, industrial safety, educational policy, and water quality. Professor Burch also published a number of books analyzing the American power structure, the relationship between economic and political elites in American government, and the rise of right-wing forces in recent decades. His works include Elites in American History (1981), a three-volume study analyzing the key economic forces in each presidential administration from George Washington through Jimmy Carter.
He loved spending summers at his waterfront cottage in Ocean Gate (near Toms River). After his happy marriage to Agnes in 2008, they summered on Martha’s Vineyard. He enjoyed sailing his catamaran and rowing his scull on Barnegat Bay; rooting for Rutgers basketball (especially back in the glory days of Bill Foster and Bobby Lloyd), Willie Mays and the New York/SF Giants, classical music, sing-along bars like Odette’s in New Hope, and playing bridge with Agnes and their many friends in Princeton and Martha’s Vineyard. Phil was a voracious reader, devouring the New York Times every day, along with a wide range of books on history, politics, and World War II. He was a man of integrity who will be deeply missed by his family and friends.
Beloved husband of Agnes Dalley Burch. Loving father to Carol Burch; David Burch and his wife Janet; Teresa Crowell and her husband Mark; and Ellen Smith and her husband Todd. Grandfather to Jacqueline and Nicholas Crowell. Also survived by step-children Laura Tobin and her husband Jim; Richard Dalley and his wife Alison; Lawrence (Kip) Dalley and his wife Kim; and Sarah Shannon and her husband Mike.
Funeral services were held at the Trinity Episcopal Church.
Donations in his name may be made to WWFM at www.wwfm.org or 1200 Old Trenton Rd., West Windsor, NJ 08550.
