John Franklin "Frank" Burrow

John Franklin Burrow - beloved husband, father, granddad

John Franklin “Frank” Burrow, age 80, of Signal Mountain, TN, passed away on March 28, 2024 in his home.  He is survived by his wife of 54 years, Lynn Edging Burrow.  He is also survived by his daughters and families, Betsy & Jeremy Cyr of Tyler, TX and granddaughters Sophia & Sarah; Anna & Allen Peterfreund of Dalton, GA and granddaughters Ava & Laney.  He is also survived by his brother & sister-in-law Richard & Janet Burrow, as well as brothers-in-law & sisters-in law Buddy & Becky Edging and Dr. Richard Edging & Dr .Pat Okker. 

Frank was born on March 30, 1943 in Norfolk, VA, the first child of Almyra Beazley & John Wesley Burrow. Throughout his childhood, Frank moved around the state of Virginia as his father was transferred and was promoted within the VA State Police.   He received his BS in Mechanical Engineering from Virginia Tech in 1965.  Upon graduation, he moved to Huntsville, AL to work for Brown Engineering, a subcontractor to NASA. He helped put a man of the moon by aiding in the design of the third stage of the Saturn 5 rocket assembly.  This was before men relied on massive computing, so he was able to do so with just hand calculations and a slide rule. While in Huntsville, he also fell over-the-moon in love with Lynn Edging, whom he married in 1969. 

He continued to work as a rocket scientist until switching gears to nuclear engineering.  In 1976, he and Lynn and their two young daughters moved to Lynchburg, VA where he went to work for the energy company Babcock & Wilcox.  His knowledge and expertise were instrumental in helping to save the world from a nuclear reactor meltdown at Three Mile Island.  In 1980, the family moved to Signal Mountain, TN where Frank worked in nuclear fuels for TVA before retiring in 2004.  He did his part to make America great.

Frank was a fun-loving person with an extraordinary sense of humor. Frank loved Corvettes, English bulldogs, and a good party.  He made the most of his retirement years by enjoying two of his lifelong passions – woodworking and restoring sixties Corvettes. However, Frank’s devotion to his wife and family is his greatest enduring legacy. 

The family will receive friends 4:00-7:00 pm on April 12, 2024at Lane Funeral Home (601 Ashland Terrace).  Funeral services will be conducted at 2:00 on April 13, 2024 in the Coulter Chapel of  Lane Funeral Home with Reverend Steven Edging officiating.  Interment will be at 3:00 on April 13, 2024 in Chattanooga Memorial Park Cemetery (501 Memorial Drive).  Those wishing to do so may make donations in Frank’s memory to the McKamey Animal Center (McKameyanimalcenter.org, 4500 N Access Rd, Chattanooga, TN) or Bethel Bible Village (bethelbiblevillage.org).  

Arrangements entrusted to Lane Funeral Home, 601 Ashland Terrace, Chattanooga, TN 37415, (423) 877-3524, lanefh.com