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The Flamekeepers of the Management, Spirituality & Religion (MSR) Division of the Academy of Management honor our memories and the legacy of Dr. Orneita Gray Burton (1957–2025)—beloved colleague, steadfast MSR leader, and Professor of Management Sciences and Information Systems at Abilene Christian University.

Many of us first met Orneita at the Academy meetings; one of us remembers sitting beside her at the dinner for MSR officers the evening she stepped into the MSR Chair role. MSR had weathered several difficult years, and some of us feared for the division’s survival. Orneita listened deeply, spoke calmly, and led with quiet courage. Through multiple offices culminating as Chair—including spending years well beyond her five-year leadership cycle during which she helped stabilize our governance, rebuild trust, and refocus our scholarly and field developmental mission. The path by which MSR matured from an interest group into a full Division of the Academy of Management is inseparable from her patient, principled leadership.

Even after completing her officer service, Orneita continued to shepherd our Dissertation Proposal Awards earlier and to mentor students and junior scholars. Colleagues remember her as “gentle yet powerful,” “vibrant and radiant,” and unwaveringly attentive to the person in front of her. She was not only devoted to MSR; she was caring of each of us.

Orneita’s academic journey reflected her integrative mind and faith-filled heart: BS in Chemical Engineering (University of Arkansas), MS in Management Science (Texas A&M), and PhD in Business Administration (Arizona State University). At ACU she bridged technology, management, spirituality, and service—teaching with rigor as a respected colleague, a Black woman, and  a religious Christian,  fully accepting of others with different perspectives.

We extend our deepest condolences to Dwain and to their family, to her ACU colleagues and students, and to the many friends she lifted up with her steady encouragement and prayer. May we honor Dr. Burton by carrying forward what she so beautifully embodied: excellence joined to compassion, scholarship joined to service, and leadership grounded in faith and hope.