kept calling and we had “the
conversation” and we felt
like is was God knocking on
the door so we put a deposit
down on an apartment behind
Zephyrhills Walmart
an we were there for a year
and a half. That’s how it all
started..”
Danny ran for mayor
and won and at the end of
his term as mayor he ran for
state house and won.
“He had never had
planned to run for state
house,” Courtney explained.
“There’s not an end goal. Its
just kind of: if he feels like
he’s making a difference
he’ll keep serving or of we
feel that that s not happening
anymore, or of the people
Danny and Courtney
decide to send us home, we’re totally comfortable with that
too. We are happy either way. Truly we’re at peace no matter
what. I think you have to be like that in politics because anything
can happen. It can’t be something you rely on or that you get
your happiness from because it can go away in the blink of an
eye. Every two years we have the conversation: “Is this right for
It is a growing family. The couple have three children Adeline
Belle Burgess, 4, and Daniel Wright Burgess III, 3 and one
who, if she keeps schedule, will be born this month. Courtney
chuckles as she talks about Danny’s namesake. “He’s still ‘Baby
Danny.’ He introduces himself as Baby Danny.. We’ve got to
Seriously, I have to work on that.”
The role of wife and mother and the task of keeping the
“I’ve had people who have known me my whole life who
-
cause Danny includes me in everything. I feel like I’m his great-
and we really weigh it out together and I talk through it with him
because not everything is black and white. I feel like he values
my opinion. We agree on most things politically which helpful,
but it nice to feel valued. He always makes me feel very included.
The political talk wears off on the kids as well. Recently
“Baby Danny” asked if his father had won the election after a
campaign event and Addy shows a strong interest in her father’s
politics.
-
ney said. Family is a major consideration for the Burgesses in
their decision-making. In the beginning, being a mayor and
working as an attorney in your hometown had a comfort to it,
time out of town.
Their decision was to be together as much as possible. As a
result, Courtney and the kids spend a lot of time with Danny in
Tallahassee and visit when he is in Washington D.C. on reserve
duty. “In Tallahassee Danny stays in a hotel for committee weeks
and then we get a place for duration of session thats big enough
for the family and then he
has to come back and do his
real job,” Courtney said.
This fall will present an
additional family challenge.
Addie starts school. They
are praying about the right
option because their Roman
Catholic faith is an integral
part of their lives. They are
active in the local church
and Courtney said that faith
-
cisions. Perhaps they will
home-school Courtney said.
That would make their Tallahassee
treks easier.
Courtney plans to remain
a stay-at-home wife
and mother until the kids
are in school. “Once they are
in school I can see myself
Adeline (bottom left) and Danny
III make a game of the information
planning on going back to
table at a the Taste of New Tampa
work after we had Adeline,”
and Wesley Chapel event in March.
she said. “We had her, and
frankly we weren’t making enough money for me to stay home
so it wasn’t even really something we had talked about, but I
dropped her off at day care and went to work and started sob-
home. We do what we have to do to make it work.” Thankfully
it was at this time that Danny was elected to the state legislature
FLORIDA WOMEN MAGAZINE 813.682.9364 OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2018 • 31