Throughout her life, Mickey was a dedicated advocate for the recovery of Texas’s native Blackland Prairies and the conservation of wildlife. Alongside her late husband, she earned recognition as one of the state’s first prairie restorationists. Together, they transformed over one hundred acres of former cotton fields into the thriving Burleson Prairie and coauthored a significant guide on tall grass restoration. In 2017, Mickey was honored with the Victor Emanuel Conservation Award from Travis Audubon for her outstanding contributions to the protection of Texas’ birds and their habitats. Her invaluable partnership with Travis Audubon and her passion for conservation will be deeply missed.
from Austin American Statesman
“I was full of wonder as a child and still haven’t completely lost it. And I– I wish every child and every human being could experience that kind of feeling that I have for the natural world. And I felt a great debt to the creator because I loved it so much….” Mickey Burleson to David Todd, June 18, 1999, Texas Legacy Project (texaslegacy.org).
Mickey Ruth Fulwiler Burleson, beloved Mother, Grandmother, Daughter, Sister, Aunt, In-law, and Friend, cherished Partner and Wife, and devoted steward to and stalwart defender of the Earth and its creatures, passed away on July 13, 2024, at the age of 87.
Mickey was born to parents Mary Elizabeth “Beth” Sparger and Jarrett “Law” Fulwiler in Belton, Texas on March 31, 1937. Born and raised in Belton, Texas, she became a long-time resident of Oenaville and Temple, living out her life on a beautiful Blackland farm and prairie situated in Bell County, Texas. She is preceded in passing by her beloved partner and husband of 47 years, Robert Clair “Bob” Burleson, Jr. She is survived by her beloved first daughter Clair Elizabeth Burleson and her husband, James Michael “Mike” Thompson, and her beloved second daughter Lea Margaret Burleson Buffington and her husband, Thomas Blake Buffington, Jr., and by her beloved and adored grandchildren Thomas Garrett and Zoe Elizabeth Buffington.
Mickey’s memories of her childhood and upbringing in Belton brought her a lot of joy, and to her children and family, a lot of smiles and laughter. She loved telling of small-town life with her younger sisters, Susan and Claudia, and of happy days spent playing sports, riding bikes and adventuring with her neighborhood friends as a child, and, later, of time spent having fun cruising around town in cars with her many Belton High School buddies. She also loved her memories of travels with her mother and sisters and of special times spent with her parents and grandparents. These were good and happy timesand Mickey’s life in Belton was so very dear to her.
There were tough times in Belton, too. Mickey contracted the polio virus as a young person. The virus affected her dominant right arm, paralyzing it. She was kept in isolation at Providence Hospital in Waco for a long time, which was frightening for her and for her family. Mickey would tell of how her Mother snuck in to the isolation ward to see her for a minute so that she would know that she was loved and to hang on and keep fighting. And fight she did, she fought hard, first to survive and then, during recovery at home, to recover the utility of her right arm by using a bar over her bed to exercise and build strength. This struggle was one that stayed with Mickey for the rest of her life. She was grateful to have lived and to have regained the use of her right arm. She knew that her outcome was a fortunate one, and she always kept the many other victims of polio in her heart and prayers, and she always expressed deep gratitude and thanks to her parents and family for their support in her recovery and to the physicians, nurses and caretakers who helped her. She also credited with deep gratitude and thanks the polio protocols of nurse and Sister Elizabeth Kinny.
Mickey always cared about the righting of wrongs. She valued truth, equity and justice, and she valued learning and believed in growth and change through education and advocacy. After graduating from Belton High School, she sought higher education in the fields of journalism and advertising, first at Baylor University, where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree, and later at the University of Iowa, where she received her Master of Arts degree. Again, those were special years for Mickey, and she loved to share with her family the many good memories she had of her college years and of time spent with beloved college friends.
After graduate school (and law school for Bob), Mickey and Bob married, and theirs would become a partnership in exploring many of the Earth’s natural places and in caring for the Earth, its creatures and inhabitants. Together, and later, with their children, daughters Clair and Lea, they hiked, backpacked, and camped, they rafted and canoed, and they kayaked, bringing others along with them and working to preserve and protect special places as they did. Their efforts were very important to the Federal protection of the Rio Grande area, the declaration of the Guadelupe Mountains area as a national park, and the creation of the Big Bend Ranch State Park. They also cared for the Earth’s people, working wholeheartedly along with many other volunteers in a faith-based mission to help the people of villages along the Texas-Mexico border, bringing dental and medical care to them, helping with community building projects, fostering an income producing quilting project (“the La Caldera Quilts”) and making friendships that lasted a lifetime.
A woman whose faith was integral to her being, Mickey, was in awe of God and of God’s creation, and she saw herself as a protective steward of the Earth. She and Bob devoted their lives to protecting and recovering Texas’ native Blackland prairies and conserving Texas wildlife, and together they restored multiple acres of agricultural fields to their original Blackland prairie state. Both Mickey and Bob took on rolls of advocacy, altruism and education, with Mickey serving as the chair of the board of trustees of the Nature Conservancy of Texas and on numerous other boards, including the Texas Land Conservancy and Texas Audubon Society, and participating in the Texas Archeolgical Society and its annual meetings. She was appointed as a Commissioner to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission by Governor Ann Richards, serving a six-year term. She also received many honors over the years, and in 2017, she was honored as a Conservation Award Hero by the Travis Audubon Society. In 2023, Mickey and her daughters, with their husbands’ and the grandchildren’s support, granted a conservation easement of Mickey and Bob’s restored Blackland prairie in Bell County, Texas, in partnership with the Native Prairies Association of Texas and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission, thusly ensuring the protection of the land for future generations. Both Mickey’s and daughter Clair’s efforts, in particular, were instrumental to seeing this process through to its successful completion.
Mickey also loved music, especially music made by Bob, singing and playing one of his guitars, or playing and singing along with his daughters and with their family and friends. She loved singing around a campfire or at one of Bob’s musical gatherings–what good times! A warm thank you to everyone who brought music into our Mom’s and our family’s life over the years.
Both Mickey and Bob delighted in their grandchildren, Zoe and Garrett. Just as they had done with their daughters, “Nini” and “Papa” would lovingly take them out on the farm and into nature to teach them about the prairie and the wonders of the natural world. When asked, both kids mentioned special mornings at the farm, waking up early to Nini’s cinnamon toast. Clair and Lea and their husbands, Mike and Blake, warmly join in on this sentiment–those were the best of mornings.
Mickey’s parents, sisters, in-laws and whole extended family were beloved by her. She is preceded in passing by her parents, Beth and Law Fulwiler and sister Susan Elaine (Fulwiler) Foster. She is survived also by her youngest sister Claudia Clark, niece, Amy Beth Clark and grandniece, Georgia Beth Clark, and by niece Virginia “Ginny” Robinson and her husband, Chris Robinson, and by grandniece and grandnephew Shiloh and Wyler Robinson. She enjoyed a gracious and loving extended family and many wonderful friends and is also survived by in-laws Bruce and Janice Burleson and family and Lin Palios and family, “brother” John Calhoun and family, Marion Burleson Childs, her children, grandchildren and family, Berta Fulwiler and family, and by dear friends Barbara and John Baker and family, Lisa and Jason Spangler and family, and Peggy and David Riskind and family, to name a few.
There will be a private burial service at the family cemetery at the farm in Oenaville, Texas, and the family will host a celebration of Mickey’s life later in the year, when the weather cools. Memorials may be made to some of the causes near to Mickey’s heart and important to her faith, including Heifer International, Doctors Without Borders, the Native Prairies Association of Texas and the Texas Nature Conservancy.
