Dr. Thomas C. Burns Sr., 71, of Fort Myers Beach, Fla., and Killington, Vt., died Saturday at the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, Lebanon, N.H., after a courageous battle with lung cancer.

Born in Butler, he was the son of Arthur R. and M. Aleene Burns.

He graduated from Butler High School, where he was a member of the swim team and a cast member of school plays. He received a doctor's degree in dental surgery from the University of Pittsburgh and practiced general dentistry in Canton and Wyalusing, both in Bradford County, for 36 years.

While living in the Wyalusing area, he was an elder of the Wyalusing Presbyterian Church and was on the board of directors of the Grange National Bank. He also was a member of the Valley Dental Society, Lions International and various service organizations. His contributions to the community were many.

After his family and friends, he most loved practicing dentistry, skiing, tennis and working in his yard.

Left to cherish his memory are his wife of 53 years, Mary Lee Martin Burns; his children, Thomas Burns and his wife, Susan, of Killington, Vt., Timothy Burns and Lee Ann Burns DiSaia and her husband, Anthony, both of Powell, Ohio, and Martin Burns of Wyalusing; his grandchildren, Kim Murphy of Beesleys Point, N.J., Lizabeth Burns of Atlanta, Ga., Timothy Burns of Herndon, Va., Rebecca Drum of Chesterfield, Va., and Samuel and Daniel DiSaia of Powell; and his great-grandsons, Alex Drum and Patrick Meinhardt.

He also is survived by his sisters, Mary Ann Taylor of Boiling Springs, Cumberland County, and Susan Bradshaw of Chicago, Ill.; his brothers, Joseph Burns of Boiling Springs and David Burns of Oklahoma City, Okla.; numerous nieces and nephews; and his family by marriage.

He was preceded in death by a brother, Walter Burns.

We will miss the sunshine your smile brought into our lives everyday.

BURNS — A memorial service celebrating the life of Dr. Thomas C. Burns Sr., who died Saturday, Nov. 26, 2005, will be at 11 a.m. Friday at the Second United Presbyterian Church, Carlisle, Cumberland County.In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions be made to Wyalusing Presbyterian Church, P.O. Box 25, Wyalusing, PA 18853; or to the Norris Cotton Cancer Center at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, 1 Medical Center Drive, Lebanon, NH 03756-0001.