Joseph A. Burks, Sr., and Elizabeth Downing Burks

Joseph Aldridge Burks, Sr., was born on September 23, 1934, to Joseph G. Burks and Elizabeth Downing Burks in Horse Cave, Kentucky. Joseph was a talented basketball player and played in both high school and college. During his senior year of high school in 1953, he helped lead Caverna High School’s basketball team to the State Tournament, where they placed third. After graduation from Caverna, he went to Middle Tennessee College to play basketball and earn his degree, graduating in 1958. He then had a long career as a teacher and coach and retired from the Hart County School System after 33 years there. He was also an original board member of the Mental Health-Mental Retardation Board, presently known as Lifeskills, a Mason, and a member of the Horse Cave Christian Church. He was married to Linda S. Burks and together they had two children, Joseph Jr. and Laura. He passed away August 1, 2008.

Elizabeth Downing Burks was born on September 18, 1917 to Aldridge Clifton Downing and Katie Burton Goodman Downing in Horse Cave, Kentucky. Elizabeth was one of seven children, including Dero Downing, former WKU president. She was the wife of Joseph Garnett Burks and the mother of Joseph Aldridge Burks, Sr., and James Wilson Burks. She was a lifelong resident of Horse Cave and unwavering in her Christian faith. She was known for her love of her family and community. Elizabeth passed away on December 7, 1990.

To honor his mother’s memory, Joseph established the Joseph A. Burks, Sr., and Elizabeth Downing Burks Memorial Scholarship Fund in 1990. The fund assists deserving students who are from Hart County and majoring in education at WKU or who are teachers in Hart County earning their graduate degrees at WKU. Through this fund, Joseph and Elizabeth’s legacies live on in perpetuity.