Norman Sumner Zimbel

Norman S. Zimbel, age 97, of Dedham, MA passed away on November 17, 2021. For 73 years, the beloved husband of Adelle (Cohen); cherished father of Ellen Rabina (Mickey), Steven Zimbel (Vianna), and Marcy Vogel (Tom); Adored “Papa” of Josh, Danielle, Talya, Becky, Ben, Alex and Jon and dearly loved “Grandpapa” of Jared, Isabel, Noa, Gil, Lee, Alice, Jacob, Nathaniel, and Oliver. Treasured brother of Judi Goldman, George Zimbel and the late Jeannette Kaye and Bess Fleischman.

Norm’s years at MIT were interrupted when he enlisted in the U.S. Army and served at Oak Ridge, contributing his expertise to the Manhattan Project. After graduating from Cornell with a graduate degree in Engineering, Norm went on to pioneer the design of large scale, high performance digital computers. At Mitre Corporation, he led a research team that invented a unique circuit to implement a nanosecond logic set.

Subsequently, Norm, an ardent Zionist, was offered and accepted a yearlong fellowship to the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel to assist in the building of a faster computer, the Golem II. The story goes that his fellow engineers affectionately nicknamed this computer the “Zimbel Zachen” after Norm. After a transformative year in Israel, Norm consulted for Arthur D. Little.

Norm’s most precious moments were when he was surrounded by his large and loving family and close friends. His summer home on Sheep Pond (Cape Cod) ` nourished him and Adelle and all who visited them there. Norm was a lifelong learner. He loved a good game of tennis and rarely missed a Red Sox game. His brilliance and humble goodness deeply touched all who knew him.

A funeral service will be held on Friday at noon at Stanetsky Memorial Chapels, 475 Washington St., Canton, MA (Masks & Vaccinations required).

Donations in memory of Norman may be made to Hebrew Senior Life https://www.hebrewseniorlife.org, Brewster Conservation Trust https://brewsterconservationtrust.org, or a charity of your choice