On Nov. 14, 2007, at the age of 26, Lakewood, Texas, Young Life volunteer leader and U.S. Army 2nd Lt. Pete Burks died in Baghdad, Iraq, in the service of his county.
Burks’ character and concern for others was well documented in newspaper and television stories that reported his death. Fellow leader, Greg Stancel, said, “The central theme in all the stories is Pete's surrender to Christ and allowing to be led by his faith.”
Pete was also known for his ability to affect a foreign accent — which he did in many skits, and kept kids “rolling in laughter,” said Stancel. Like the concern Burks had for the “less cool kids who he had a way of bringing back to club week after week,” he cared for the soldiers under his leadership.
Before Burks’ death, he sent home a list of goods his soldiers most missed. Following his death, Burks’ family and friends, and fiancée, Missy Haddad, mailed care packages filled with those items to Burks’ forward base.
Chaplain Bryan Smith received those care packages and said it wasn’t long before he had more than 200 packages from towns all over Texas. “As I thought and prayed about how I could best honor the memory of Peter and show my appreciation to all those people in Texas whose cards and gifts kept coming in,” wrote Chaplain Smith, he decided the best tribute was to open a store in Burks’ memory where goodies of all kind are provided free to soldiers.
On Christmas Eve 2007, Forward Operating Base Prosperity celebrated the grand opening of the Burks Country Store, where twice each week soldiers can choose items from care packages sent in Burks’ memory free of charge. An average of 50 soldiers visit the store every time it opens and, to date, more than two tons of care packages have been sent to stock the store.
If you’d like to learn more about the Burks Country Store, or make a care package donation in Pete Burks’ memory, information including a list of needed items is available online.
“… that's something that I ask God to do every day while I'm over here: to make me a good steward of the gifts that He's given me so that I might positively influence the lives of others for the good of His kingdom. That is more or less God's desire for us on earth. We are called simply to plant the seed of His love in other people, and it's up to them and God as to whether or not it grows. As long as we do that, we are accomplishing God's mission for us here on earth.” – Pete Burks, Sept. 24, 2007