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Like most Americans, Bums enjoys outdoor grilling and prefers smooth peanut butter.
Close to home
Like 60 percent of Americans,
Burns lives in his native state. Born
in Willimanrit, he graduated in 1971
from the very high school where he
works.
The year after graduation, he met
Ins wife, Sue, thanks to a matchmak
ing co-worker. Burns walked three
miles to Kentucky Fried Chicken
where Sue was working and nervous
ly placed an order with his bride-to
be: "Is there a Susan here.-' I'd like to
order a shrimp box dinner.”
The shrimp dinner led to a first
date, then a pre-engagement ring
Bob met Sue, his wife of 34 years, at a Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant.
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www.americanprofile.com •
three months later. "I knew right
away that this was the one for me,"
Bob says. "You know when the ham
mer hits your head."
The couple have three children:
David, 30, an attorney in Bolton,
Conn. (pop. 5,017); Nicole Starkey,
27, a juvenile caseworker in Wind
ham; and Jared, 24, stationed at
Dyess Air Force Base in Abilene,
Texas.
The family's tidy 1968 red shingle
sided house is bordered with bloom
ing gladiolas, coneflowers, tomatoes
and raspberries and, as is the national
norm, has a paved parking area lead-
Page 13
ing to the garage. While the
couple's children are grown,
they frequently pop in for
visits and two granddaugh
ters help keep the house
abuzz. As with most Amer
icans, the Burns consider
their family to be “extreme
ly” or "very important."
Bob and Sue provide a spare room
as a “home away from home" to six to
eight cadets each year from the nearby
U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New
London, Conn. (pop. 25,671).
"They're such easy guests,” Sue says.
“Usually, it'll be a three-day weekend
and they'll come here and watch sports
with Bob."
Sixty-four percent of Americans are
football fans, as is Bob. He’s also a
baseball fan and coached Little League
for 15 years. That's typical, too, of most
Americans, who are charitable with
both their time and money.
When he wants to relax. Bob goes
fishing. In the summer, he enjoys grill
ing his latest catch, alongside hamburg
ers and Polish sausage, on his backyard
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deck. A grill on a deck,
porch or patio is standard
at most American homes,
as are pets. The Burns have
three —cats Roger and Jinx
and dog Missy.
A white picket fence
frames the couple's backyard
that is shaded by towering
Author Kevin O'Keefe
spruces. No, a picket fence isn’t among
tlie 14<) criteria of the average Ameri
can, but it seems a perfect Fit, along
with the Stars & Stripes flying in the
front yard.
Like 63 percent of Americans, Bob
says he is living the American dream.
"I may not be the wealthiest person in
the world, but I'm happy with what
I’ve got," he says. ''l've been married 34
years to the same person. I'm very proud
of my kids. I couldn't ask for more."
Are you an average American?
Take the quiz on page 14.
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