Merrimack College - Merrimackan Yearbook (North Andover, MA)

Page 23 text:

George J. McLaughlin, O.S.A. Albert W. Burns A warm smile . . . discussion on the supply and demand curves ... a humorous anecdote . . . the problems of inflation ... a friendly chat . . . the theo- ries of Adam Smith — memories of an economics cla ss for so many, and Fr. McLaughlin was the prof- essor. Rev. George McLaughlin died suddenly last De- cember. What is ironic, however, is that Fr. Mc- Laughlin was preparing to fly to Scranton, Pa. to meet his sister, Alice, when on the same day he was to leave, he was stricken with a heart attack. Fr. McLaughlin entered the Augustinian Order in 1933. He received his bachelor’s degree from Villa- nova University and his master’s in economics from the Catholic University. After serving as chaplin in the Army, he was positioned at Villanova and was then transferred to Merrimack College. There were various activities, however that con- tributed to the character of the late Fr. McLaughlin. In speaking to some priests who knew him intimat- ely, he was regarded as a good community person. The faculty of Merrimack found him willing to serve on campus committees and valued his ad- vice. One example of this is the curriculum commit- tee to which Fr. McLaughlin contributed his serv- ices. As many people know, numerous proposals were offered for the changes in curriculum. Fur- thermore, these programs required extensive study which took many hours of reading besides great patience. Fr. McLaughlin played his part in this project. While in the classroom, he offered numerous in- sights into Economics and tried to be as helpful as he could in teaching a rather difficult subject. Fr. McLaughlin was a dedicated man who will be missed by all on the Merrimack College Campus. Dr. Albert W. Burns, Jr. was born on September 16, 1924 in Winthrop, Mass. Dr. Burns received his college education at Mt. Carmel Junior and Senior Seminary in Ontario, Canada. He furthered his studies to obtain a master’s degree from Boston College in 1950 and recently received his doctorate from Boston University in the early part of June. Previous to his position at Merrimack, he taught at Boston College. We at Merrimack grieve the loss of a devoted faculty member and dedicated teacher who has been with the college for the past several years. This, it is seen fitting that a memorial trust fund be established in Dr. Burns’ name. At present, a com- mittee has been created for this purpose, but the plans concerning the use of this fund are still in their early stages. For the students who knew him . . . they also feel a loss. Whether the lecture be about Chaucer, Wordsworth, or Frost, the students of Dr. Burns knew that his professor possessed true insight into English literature and poetry — an insight that comes only with immense knowledge and ex- perience in the subject. Merrimack will miss seeing his frequent walks about the c ampus and also his friendly chats on the library terrace with his students. But, most of all, it will miss a man who could share his ideas in the subject he loved and who made this sharing re- warding to others. 19