Patricia Burk was born in San Francisco, California and grew up in Redwood City. She has lived in Provo and Midway, Utah; Homestead, Florida; San Juan, Puerto Rico; Cypress, Texas and Salem, Utah. She also lived in Montevideo, Uruguay; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; and Guatemala City, Guatemala while serving missions for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. She received both a BA degree in Elementary Education and a Certification in Special Education from Brigham Young University and received a Texas certification to teach ESL. She taught Special Education at Antilles High School at Ft. Buchanan, Puerto Rico, and at Cy-Fair High School in Cypress, Texas. She has written several family history books including her personal history MY COLLECTION OF MEMORIES: BIRTH TO MARRIAGE 1949-1971. She is married to William A. Burk. They are the parents of 7 children, and have 32 grandchildren.