Ronda "Ronnie" (Brooks) Burns

Ronda “Ronnie” Brooks Burns, 96, of Litchfield, Ct., passed away on Dec. 12, at Charlotte Hungerford Hospital following a brief illness.

        A longtime philanthropist and bird lover, Ronnie was born on Oct. 18, 1928 to prominent local banker John H. Brooks and his wife Virginia W. Brooks in Torrington Ct.

        She attended elementary schools in Litchfield before enrolling at the Barrington School for Girls in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, later transferring to the Beard School for Girls in Orange, New Jersey where she graduated in 1946. 

        Ronnie attended Bennett College for Women in Millbrook, New York, where she earned a liberal arts degree in 1948.

        Following graduation, Ronnie worked at the Brooks Bank before meeting the love of her life, Harold J. Burns, a Torrington Realtor who had served as lieutenant commander in the U.S. Naval Reserve during World War II. The couple were wed on Nov. 22, 1950, in New York City and Ronnie welcomed and began caring for Harold’s eight-year-old daughter, Margaret.

        Ronnie was a deeply devoted wife to her husband and had two children, Molly Flint Burns, born in 1952, and John Brooks Burns in 1956.

        Family was important to Ronnie who, as an only child, delighted in getting together with Harold’s seven siblings, their spouses and many children with whom she developed loving and lasting relationships. Her 28 nieces and nephews could always depend on getting a birthday or anniversary card in the mail, usually accompanied by a check or gift certificate, from their beloved Aunt Ronnie.

        A voracious reader, Ronnie was often moved to act upon what she’d learned in the many books she consumed. After reading Rachel Carson’s 1962 bestselling nonfiction book, “Silent Spring,” documenting the extensive environmental harm caused by the indiscriminate use of DDT and other loosely regulated synthetic pesticides, Ronnie became a longstanding benefactor to multiple conservation and environmental groups including the World Wildlife Fund, Environmental Defense Fund and the Sierra Club.

        A steadfast advocate for women’s autonomy, Ronnie gave generously to multiple organizations including Planned Parenthood and the Torrington-based Susan B. Anthony Project that promotes safety, healing and growth for survivors of domestic violence and sexual abuse.

        The Torrington Library was one of her strongest passions. Recalling that her father, grandfather and great-great uncle had each served as president of the library’s board of trustees during the prior century, Ronnie gave generously to help underwrite the facility’s major renovation and expansion in 2015.

        Her favorite hobby was identifying and feeding the numerous varieties of songbirds that frequented the backyard at her Litchfield Street home in Torrington where she lived for 63 years. Ronnie learned to identify dozens of bird species by their songs and each year would faithfully record the exact dates when particular species returned in the spring from their winter migration in the tropics to her backyard sanctuary. 

        To ensure a safe place for the birds to breed and thrive in perpetuity, Ronnie gifted 35 acres of woodland property off nearby Wyoming Avenue to the Heritage Land Preservation Trust.

        Along with birdwatching, Ronnie was an inveterate fan of the “Jeopardy!” television program which she enjoyed for more than 50 years.

        Ronnie will be remembered for her kind and caring disposition, quick wit, irreverent sense of humor and generosity.

        For the last few years of her life, Ronnie was lovingly cared for by her close friend, Isabel Germosen, and other personal caregivers and staff at Brandywine Living in Litchfield.

        Ronnie, who was predeceased by her husband, Harold, and her stepdaughter, Maggie Clarke, is survived by her children, Molly Widman and her husband, Fred Widman, of New Windsor, New York; son John Burns and his wife, Jayne Burns, of Sebastopol, California; grandson Tim Olson of Clinton Corners, New York; granddaughter Amy Pedrero and her husband, Louis Pedrero of Campbell Hall, New York; grandson Harrison Burns of Salt Lake City, Utah; granddaughter Julia Burns of Portland, Oregon; great grand-children Clara, Schuyler, and Eliana Pedrero of Campbell Hall, New York; and numerous nieces and nephews. 

        Graveside services were held in Hillside Cemetery, Torrington. On May 2, 2025.

        In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Susan B. Anthony Project or the Torrington Library. 

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