Norm passed away March 19, 2013 at the age of 92 at Royal Oaks in Sun City, AZ. He was born September 13, 1920 and was raised in Garfield, Ohio, along with his only brother Charlie who pre-deceased him. Norm is also pre-deceased by his bride of 68 years, Margaret Elizabeth Truesdale. He entered Kent State University in the fall of 1938, where he was a drum major in the marching band, as he had also been in high school, where he played the trumpet, in addition to twirling his baton high into the air and catching it. Norm was proud that he could twirl a baton while he was lying on his back. In 1941 he received his private pilot's license, and later entered the Naval Air Corps on November 11, 1942. He left the Naval Air Corps and entered the Army Air Corps in the fall of 1943. Norm was sent to Kansas State University where he met the love of his life Margaret "Trudy" Truesdale, on a blind date. In 1944 he was sent to Bombardier School in Deming, New Mexico. He received his wings and became a Flight Officer, then transferred to Roswell, New Mexico. Norm called Trudy, asked her to marry him, and they were wed in Roswell on March 23, 1945. They were then transferred to Buckingham Air Field in Fort Meyers, Florida. He was then sent to Lincoln, Nebraska, to get a crew together. Along with his crew, he was to be sent to the Island of Tinias on August 7th to bomb Japan. He kissed Trudy good-bye and arrived at the base, prepared to ship out, only to learn that the first atomic bomb had just been dropped on Japan the previous day. Those plans to ship out were cancelled. Norm was out of the service, having served his country admirably. He and Trudy left Kansas and stopped in McPherson, Kansas to visit her folks before traveling to Cleveland where they started their family. Norm became a salesman, like his father, but Norm sold steel. He is survived by his four children: Karen Cannon, Sandy Frank, Linda Skufca, and Douglas Uhl, six grandchildren, and four great grandchildren. For many years both Norm and Trudy worked two jobs each in order to support their children and ensure that each would have an opportunity to attend college. Norm and Trudy never missed a PTA meeting, a parent-teacher conference, a band concert, or a meeting at church. Arguably, Norm’s favorite past time was watching football. He was a devoted fan of the Cleveland Browns, his alma mater Kent State, and even the Ohio State football team. Go Buckeyes! Arrangements were handled by Sunland Mortuary. A celebration of Norm's life will be held at 11:00 AM, Tuesday, March 26 at Faith Presbyterian Church, 16000 N. Del Webb Blvd., Sun City. In lieu of flowers, please make donations to the National Kidney Foundation (4203 E. Indian School Rd #140, Phx, AZ 85018) or AZ Humane Society (www.azhumane.org/ ).
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