LaQuita Darline Burton

BURLEY – LaQuita Darline Burton, a 68-year-old resident of Burley, died Sunday, September 15, 2024, at her home.

LaQuita was born February 11, 1956, in Houston, Texas, to John and Nina Anderson. After traveling around a few years, the family settled in Declo, Idaho.

LaQuita and her siblings, Johnny, Clint, David and Mariann, went to school in Declo and made some lifelong friends. School was easy for LaQuita. She was known for working the graveyard shift, sleeping through her classes and still getting straight A’s. She was an avid reader and would often stay up late to finish a new book, a trait she passed on to her kids and grandkids alike.

As a teen, LaQuita learned to cut and bale hay with her dad and brothers as a family business. Another family venture was the candy shop in Declo. She learned to make candy with her dad (John) and aunt (Dorothy). She passed on that candy making knowledge to her kids, and it is still a tradition to make candy at Christmas.

LaQuita learned to quilt and can/preserve food from the garden from her mother, Nina, a talent that she passed on to her kids. She always had a garden of some sort. Gardening was her happy place and she eventually became a Master Gardener through CSI.

She had many jobs in her lifetime, but her favorite was home schooling her four kids, Kelly, Katie, Lacey and Andy. She was very hands on with raising animals, bum lambs, goats, chickens, and rabbits. She taught her kids to care for and love the critters. One of her daughters is even nicknamed “Ellie Mae” after Ellie Mae Clampett because she always came home with some new critter to care for.

She was a great seamstress. She loved to sew and worked at Pizza Hut to pay for her sewing machine. She taught herself to sew by sewing clothes for her kids. While she did alterations for others, she always said she was best at the little dresses, but her boys would argue that the tailored jeans were the best.

LaQuita did bookkeeping for many different people throughout her life and was meticulous. She never shied away from a challenge and loved to learn new things, another trait she has passed on to the children and grandchildren.

If you ask her nieces and nephews about “Aunt Quitie”, they would tell you “Don’t mess around at her house, she will put you to work!” Kids knew better than to say they were bored around Aunt Quitie; she would find them a job. There was always a chicken coop to muck and weeds to pull, or cupboards to clean. She would tell you “Smart people don’t get bored!”, but you always knew you were loved. She had a great sense of humor and many times at family gatherings, she and her daughters would get the giggles over something silly and soon have the whole family in stitches.

LaQuita was always a great sounding board and voice of reason. She was quick to tell you to evaluate yourself before pointing fingers. She would always ask, “Have you prayed about it?” Her love for the Lord was shown throughout her life, and she was quick to ask for forgiveness.

She will be greatly missed by all who knew her. Our assurance is that we will see her in heaven dancing with her husband, Robert, of 35 years, and waiting with her Lord and Savior for us to get there and have some more laughs.

A celebration of life will be held from 1 until 4 p.m. Saturday, October 19, at First Baptist Church, located at 2262 Hiland Avenue, in Burley. Arrangements have been entrusted to the care of Rasmussen-Wilson Funeral Home of Burley.