Norman F. - Assisted Living Resident Spotlight
Norman F. is the assisted living Resident Spotlight this month at Renaissance Village Murrieta.
He was born in Rhode Island on All Saints Day in 1935. This fact brought him to dub himself the nickname “Saint Norman”. He’s the youngest of six kids, but he wasn’t too keen the reference of "the baby of the family." He has two brothers and three sisters. However, most of the kids had already grown and were out living their lives while he was growing up.
His father was a bank employee and handled funds transfers. He remembers his mother as always being too generous. Growing up he delivered papers, and did it for a while. The job was very profitable for him compared to his older brother’s paper delivery business.
Rhode Island to California
When Norman was 14 or 15 years old, his family decided to make the move to California. They made the drive across the country in a 1938 Buick. Norman remembers how cold the back seat was as back then doors didn’t close quite like they do today. They moved to Van Nuys, California where
his older brother and sister-in-law lived. He remembers the first day there, it was 75 or 80 degrees and he knew he’d found his new home.
The Start of an Era: Computers
Norman went to Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo for four years to study mathematics. At the time computers were up and coming and his focus changed when he began to take computer classes. His career in computers really took off and he ended up not finishing his studies or getting a degree.
Norman worked in installing and testing problems for defense systems all over the world. He helped detect unfriendly aircrafts and bomb threats. He enjoyed running tests and solving hidden problems with the computers. It also gave him the opportunity to travel. He was able to work in Spain, Norway, Taiwan, Egypt and other countries in Europe.
Marriage & Family
Norman's company had a test section located in Phoenix, Arizona. This location was where they sent problems for additional testing for hidden problems. He moved to Phoenix and got an apartment. His apartment complex also had a swimming pool and he went swimming every night after work. It’s here where he met his wife, Karen. Her sister and mother also lived in the apartment complex. He remembers trying to figure out which of the two was the oldest. Each night he found himself second guessing himself. It wasn’t until he realized that the girls were switching bathing suits that he figured it out.
They married June, 2, 1962 and celebrate over 55 years of marriage. Norman loves that Karen has a bit of a temper. She’ll get mad at him and he’d stop answering her. After twenty minutes everything will be gone and she would be over it.
They have three children, Don, Deanne and Stacey. Karen did most of the raising because Norman was working. But when he got home he’d take over so she could rest. As the kids went to bed he’d rub their backs and read them stories so they could get to sleep. He enjoyed those special times with his kids.
Travel & Computer Problems
Due to the nature of his job, he traveled a lot, and quite a few times he was able to take his family with him. He shares these trips were a great educational experience for his children. The children exposed to different languages and cultures. Norman’s time in Spain was his favorite, and he enjoyed visiting the Mediterranean.
He is also a grandfather to five grandchildren, ages ranging from 8 to 30 years old. He enjoys visiting with them around the holidays.
A Love of Golf & Football
Today, Norman enjoys playing golf with his son or watching professional football. His favorite teams are the Los Angeles Rams, USC Trojans and Stanford Cardinal. He remembers going to USC football games when he was younger. His mother worked for a hardware store and one of her coworkers was a friend of the owners. She got him tickets every so often.
He is also proud of the fact that he and his wife, Karen were able to raise three kids who never got into any trouble or did drugs. He’s also proud to say that those three kids have gone on to raise families of their own.
Norman likes that the staff at Renaissance Village Murrieta is very friendly, very nice and the community is well maintained. He shares the food is very good, and they take care of residents well.
