Norman L. Wholley

Norman Leo Wholley, 98, died on April 1, 2022 at the Edgehill retirement community in Stamford. He was the very model of a devoted father, a loving husband, and a great friend known for his warmth and sense of humor. Norm was born in Haverhill, MA in 1923, the eldest of three children of Leo Francis Wholley and Ida Marie Wholley (Boucher). He attended Boston College in 1942, but left to enlist in the U.S. Navy that year. He was assigned to the destroyer USS Thompson as a sonar operator, serving in the Pacific and the Mediterranean. He was later selected for the V-12 College Training Program, designed to create more commissioned officers in the Navy during World War II. He attended the College of the Holy Cross and Franklin and Marshall College before graduating in 1947 with a degree in Economics from Harvard University, where he pitched for the baseball team. After a stint as an assistant buyer at the department store chain Jordan Marsh in Boston, Norm began a highly successful 37-year career at American Can Company, working his way from sales assistant to Vice President, Corporate Markets.

In 1954, he married Marie Orvitt, a schoolteacher from Quincy, Mass., and they had six children, residing in Stamford, Connecticut for more than 60 years, where Marie taught at Northeast Elementary School. After his retirement in 1987, Norm was active in community service as a board member of the Volunteer Center of Fairfield County, the Connecticut Council on Economic Education, the Stamford chapter of the American Red Cross, the Smith House nursing home (now the Villa at Stamford), and chair of the Stamford Senior Songsters. A devout Catholic and music lover, Norm sang locally in the church choirs of St. Cecilia’s, Holy Spirit and St. Leo’s parishes. He played tennis well into his 80s and was a lifelong Boston Red Sox fan. Norm and Marie traveled to Europe, Australia, and Africa, and enjoyed summers together at their vacation home on Martha’s Vineyard until her death in 2011.

Norm is survived by his sons David (Peggy) of Montclair, NJ; Paul (Alicia) of Nashville, TN; William (Betty) of Tinton Falls, NJ; Mark (Emily) of Quincy, MA; Brendan (Lisa) of Rochester, NY; and daughter Mary Pierce (Dana) of Trumbull, CT. He will also be missed by his 10 grandchildren: Michael, Meredith, Katie, James, Grace, Liam, Julian, Maggie, Meghan, and Elizabeth, and six nieces and nephews. Norm is also survived by a brother, Robert Wholley and wife Priscilla of Falmouth Mass. In addition to his wife, he was predeceased by his sister Evelyn Clausnitzer and husband Walter of Groveland, MA and a grandson, Eamonn Wholley.

A memorial Mass to celebrate Norm’s life will be held on Friday April 8 at 11:00 AM, at St. Leo Parish Church, 24 Roxbury Road, Stamford. Viewing will be from 9:00AM – 10:30 AM at the Leo P. Gallagher & Son Funeral Home, 2900 Summer Street, Stamford. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions in Norm’s name may be made to the New Covenant Center soup kitchen in Stamford (www.newcovenantcenter.org). For online condolences, or to share a photo or a story, please visit www.leopgallagherstamford.com.