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Inducted posthumously in 1991 … honored for his varied contributions to athletics in Rockland … trailblazer in the development of sports activities for persons with disabilities … promoter extraordinaire … boxing referee… instructor, organizer, selfless humanitarian … came to Rockland County from Long Island in 1925, started out as an attendant at Letchworth Village Developmental Center and rose to become recreation director … launched sports programs for Letchworth residents that were the precursor of Special Olympics competitions … Burns organized, developed and promoted the Letchworth Big 5, a crackerjack team of Rockland basketball players with a wide following … Burns promoted offbeat but popular events like the swim across the Hudson and a race to High Tor mountain and back … also helped develop minstrel shows for the children at Letchworth, and formed the Calypso Band, which performed annually at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City … he was a regular boxing referee at televised fights originating from arenas in Queens … after leaving Letchworth in 1957, he worked at an orphanage on the Caribbean island of Jamaica, where he helped train Alan Hannon, who fought for the light heavyweight title … Burns died in 1968 at age 73.