Norm was born December 23, 1930 in Union, MS to the late Jesse Smith and Ida Ophelia May Smith. He was preceded in death by eleven older siblings. He is survived by his wife of 28 years, Judith T. Smith; son, William Norman Smith (Anne); daughter, Mary Elizabeth (“Libby”) King (Stephen); brother-in-law, David H. Trask; five grandchildren, four great granddaughters and several nieces and nephews.
He was a veteran of the US Army and a graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi. Norm worked for the Federal Government as a civilian for over 30 years, retiring in January of 1986. While there he started working with computers when punched cards were being used. He took 6 months off to work for General Electric, designing a program to test the reliability of the Saturn Rocket.
In his retirement years, he continued to play bridge and enjoyed golf, playing in all 50 states. He and his wife, Judy, traveled in their RV throughout the US and Canada. They stayed in the RV while they volunteered with Habitat for Humanity in rebuilding in Biloxi after Hurricane Katrina. While traveling, he developed an interest in bird watching. His North American life list included over 700 species and led to birding trips to Tanzania, South Africa, Australia and Belize. He was a member of Genesis United Methodist Church in Cary.
A memorial service will be held on Friday, October 5, at noon at Apex Funeral Home, 550 W. Williams St, Apex, NC 27502. The family will receive friends immediately following the service.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Cure Alzheimer's Foundation www.curealz.org; or a charity of one's choice.
Condolences may be sent to www.ApexFuneral.net
