Donald Jean Norton, MD passed away peacefully at home on April 24, 2021. He was born June 11, 1933 to Raymond and Virginia (Paquette) Norton. He attended Good Shepherd Elementary and Waite High School. He was a member of Christ the King Catholic Church in Toledo, Ohio and St. Patrick’s Catholic Church in Sarasota, Florida.
He graduated from The University of Toledo in 1954, graduated from the University of Cincinnati Medical School in 1958, he completed his internship at St. Mary’s Hospital in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1959 and completed his residency at Mercy Hospital in Toledo, Ohio in 1960. On July 15, 1960 he started his service to the community when he joined Dr. Joseph McCarthy and had a successful Family Medicine Practice until Dr. McCarthy's passing in 1993 (they were together 33 years).
In 1995 he joined with 4 family practice physicians to form a group of 5 family medicine practice doctors until his retirement. He spent time on staff at both Mercy Hospital and St. Vincent’s Hospital. He retired on February 14, 2000 after 40 years of a fulfilling medical practice.
He was very committed to the care of his patients and went above and beyond to ensure they had the best medical care. He was described by his patients as being very thorough and caring, had a genuine interest in his patients health and truly cared about making patients well. He would often make house calls to his patients who were too ill to travel to his office. In his own words from his retirement letter: “I was rewarded many times over by the gratitude and appreciation of the many people who have placed their confidence and lives in my hands”. After his retirement he had a need to stay connected to the medical world and would attend medical lectures once a week at Sarasota Memorial Hospital and often read medical books to keep up on his medical knowledge.
In 1955 he met his soon to be future wife and best friend Charlene Sparks. They met at Flower Hospital where he was externing and she was working as a nurse. On June 21, 1958 they were married and would have celebrated their 63rd wedding anniversary this year. He was truly dedicated to her and they had a long wonderful life together. During his retirement he and Charlene enjoyed life in Sarasota, Florida where he made many close friends in his community who were his “Florida family”. He loved spending time with them so much.
He had a long lasting passion for boating and enjoyed time spent with his family at their cottage on Burt Lake in northern Michigan and later on Lake Erie. He loved Disney World and would often go after his retirement. He had an extensive military medal insignia collection that he cherished which he started when he was in the 8th grade. He enjoyed waterskiing and snow skiing, playing tennis, swimming and riding his bike.
He cherished his family and loved being “Papa” to his 7 grandchildren. Don is survived by his wife Charlene (Sparks) Norton, his brother Robert (Virginia) Norton, his daughter Kim Norton, daughter Cheri Baker, daughter Mary (Mike) Whatmore, and daughter-in-law, Linda Norton; grandchildren Cameron Norton, Paige, Jack-Henry and Brigitte Woodward, Joseph Baker, Jillian and Shane Whatmore.
He is preceded in death by his father Raymond Norton, mother Virginia (Paquette) Norton and his son Jeffrey Norton.
A special thanks to Tidewell, especially Ashley, Jessica, Denise, Jaime and Shioban. Thank you so much for being so caring and making him so peaceful and restful. You are all amazing!
A memorial mass will begin at 8:00 am on Saturday, June 19, 2021 at the Church of Saint Patrick, 7900 Bee Ridge Rd., Sarasota, FL 34241.
In lieu of Flowers, donations can be made in his memory to the Sisters of Visitation or the Franciscan Sisters whom he provided medical care to. Donations can also be made to the church or Tidewell Hospice, Inc. in his memory.
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