Gail Tice Burda

Gail Tice Burda, age 83, and a longtime resident of Woodbridge, Virginia, died from stroke-related complications on July 15, 2017.
Born in Plainfield, New Jersey, Gail was a graduate of New Jersey State Teachers College, Newark, New Jersey, (now Kean University). She and her husband, Henry F. Burda, moved to Prince William County, Virginia in 1962 to assume ownership and operation of Story Book Land on Route 1 in Woodbridge, which was founded and built by her father, Delmar Tice. Following the closure of Story Book Land in 1979, Gail resumed her teaching career and served as a language arts teacher at Woodbridge Senior High School, a position she held until her retirement in 1999. At WSHS, Gail was one of the early sponsors of Eddas, the highly acclaimed student literary magazine.
Gail was very active in the community. She was a member of the Woodbridge Lioness Club, the Prince William Conservation Alliance, and the Prince William Committee of 100, and was a regular volunteer at Chinn Library. She served many years on the Occoquan District Land Use Advisory Committee. Gail was also a committed member of the Prince William Democratic Committee and over the years participated in many campaigns to promote the causes she believed in.
Gail is survived by her two daughters: Patricia Burda of Chevy Chase, Maryland, and her husband, Joseph Guerra, and Linda Boaz of Bealeton, Virginia, and her husband, Charles Boaz. Her surviving grandchildren are Alexander and Anne Guerra and Suzannah and Autumn Boaz. She is also survived by her sister, Jane Tice Touchet of Woodbridge.
Gail was preceded in death by her husband of 55 years, Henry Burda, and by her parents, Delmar and Carolyn Tice.
Funeral arrangements will be private. Those wishing to honor Gail may make a donation to the local animal rescue charity SADSAC (Save a Dog, Save a Cat), P.O. Box 972, Dumfries, VA 22026, www.sadsac.org; or to the Natural Resources Defense Council, 40 W. 20th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10011 (www.nrdc.org).