Rae Lyn Burke

I was honored to know and work with Rae Lyn Burke at Chiron during the late 80's and most of 1990s. She was an inspiration to me, strong and confident in her scientific knowledge and mentorship qualities. Working with Rae Lyn was my most treasured learning experience and professional growth time during my years at Chiron. She was gentle, yet persuasive in her ways of conveying information and guidance. She helped me to learn a lot and build confidence in my own abilities, respectfully and gracefully. I always walked away with a feeling of "I can do this" after an editing session on a document we were collaborating on, or a discussion with her about a project or challenging experimental result. She knew how to communicate with honest and respectful language, even if she disagreed. Rae Lyn was kind and generous too. When my wedding venue cancelled 2 days before the date, she offered her home to us! We did not accept the offer, because we found another outdoor location available in Marin County, but the gesture put us at ease knowing we had a backup plan just in case, with her lovely home in SF and beautiful view of the city and the bay... I was saddened to learn about her unfortunate diagnosis when that came some years after our Virology group at Chiron was dismantled due to program changes after clinical trial outcomes were not favorable. I am happy that some of our wonderful Chiron colleagues coordinated and brought our team together to celebrate Rae Lyn's birthday that year, before her disease had progressed too far so we could all have some fun together with her. I will always hold a special place in my heart for Rae Lyn.