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Biographical notes (written in 1982).
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JOSEPH B. BURGUM, and FAMILY. Joe Burgum was born on September 2, 1917, in Arthur, the youngest son of J.A. and Jessamine Burgum. Joey, as he was known then, attended school in Arthur and graduated from high school in 1934. Following high school, he attended North dakota State University, in Fargo and the University of Minnesota School of Law in Minneapolis. Joe enlisted in the U.S. Navy in January of 1942. He served as an officer on a destroyer in the Pacific. While in the Navy, on April 8, 1944, he married a former NDSU classmate, Katherine Kilbourne. She was teaching home economics at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan at that time. Joe and Katherine returned to Arthur in 1947 to continue his work with the Arthur Farmers Elevator Company. The business had been in the Burgum family since 1906, and Joe had been helping his older brothers, Lee and Al, at the elevator since an early age. Joe assumed the responsibilities for managing the elevator in 1962, a position he held until his death on January 31, 1971.
During their years in Arthur, both Joe and Kay were active in many community organizations. Joe also served as clerk for the village board and as treasurer for the Methodist church for most of those years. Katherine was active with the local Republican Party, Homemakers, and school board and served on the building committees for the Methodist church and parsonage. The Burgums had three children, bradley Joseph born in 1952, Barbara Kay born in 1953, and Douglas James born in 1956. Following high school, Bradley attended North Dakota State University and the University of North Dakota School of Law graduating in 1977. He married Julie Opp of Napolean, North Dakota in 1976 and currently resides in Casselton, North Dakota where he practices law. In addition to his legal work, Bradley is active in managing the family farm interests and serves as a director of the Arthur Farmers Elevator Company. Bradley and Julie have a son, James, who was born in 1980.
Joe and Katherine's daughter, Barbara, is also a graduate of North Dakota State University. She currently lives in Bloomington, Minnesota. Barb works as a manager for Bachmann's European Flower Markets in the Minneapolis area. Douglas became the fifth member of his family and another of the third generation of Burgums to graduate from NDSU in 1978. He continued his education at Stanford University where he received his Master's Degree in Business Administration in 1980. Now living in Chicago, Illinois, Douglas works as a management consultant for McKinsey and Company.
Katherine has continued her activities on the local, state and national level in both the political and community service fields, serving as Republican National Committeewoman from North Dakota and on several national and state boards and commissions. In 1972, she assumed the responsibilities of Dean of the College of Home Economics at North Dakota State University. She held this position, in addition to a number of home economics administration and educational assignments on the national level until her retirement in 1980. Katherine currently serves on the board of directors for Western States Life Insurance Company, The Neurological Institute, and the Arthur Farmers Elevator Company.
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