Age 86, Lawton - Memorial service will be 2:00 PM Thursday, December 17, 2009 at Centenary United Methodist Church with Rev. William F. Todd, Rev. Phil Jones and Dr. Ralph Alexander officiating. COL Burton died Thursday at his home. Arrangements are under the direction of Becker Funeral Home. He was born April 23, 1923 in Munday, Texas to Cecil and Alta Burton. A military man, he joined the Marine Corp and was sworn in December 17, 1941 and was assigned to the 2nd Amphibian Tractor Battalion. He served overseas from June 1942 until September 1944. He participated in the landings at Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Saipan and Tinian. He received three Presidential citations at Tarawa, a bloody landing with treacherous losses where he was wounded and evacuated. He left the Marine Corp and was briefly a civilian. COL Burton then joined the Army and went to OCS. He was next assigned to the 555 FA Battalion in Korea in July 1950. He was wounded again in Korea and received the Purple Heart with cluster. Upon completing twenty two years of service in 1965 he joined his wife in Burton Realty and personally participated in this until recently when his health would not permit it. He served on The Lawton Board of Realtors as MLS Chair and Board President. He worked with Purple Heart Groups and was a member of Centenary United Methodist Church. He was a graduate of Cameron University where he was a member of President's Partners, etc. Survivors include his wife, Mollie, of the home, a daughter, Dr. Bonnie Burton, son and daughter-in-law, Tom and Sherry Burton and Tom's twin, Maggi Burton and her husband Ken Warner, further family ties, Brenda Shehan, Kansas, sister and brother-in-law, Ruth and Bob Kimbrough, seven grandchildren, three great grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews. He is preceded in death by his parents and two daughters, Louise Burton Gray and Betty Jane Burton.