LITTLE ROCK – Norman Lee Norton, 77, went to his heavenly home surrounded by his family on July 9, 2020, at Regency Hospital in Florence, SC.
A celebration of life will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, July 14, 2020, at Main Street United Methodist Church with Rev. Henry Altman officiating.
Live viewing of the service will be available on the Main Street United Methodist Church – Dillon Facebook page. Burial will follow in St. Paul’s Methodist Church Cemetery in Little Rock, SC. The family will receive friends from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. in Asbury Hall prior to the service.
Norman was born in Mullins, SC on April 19, 1943, the son of the late Alfred Lee Norton and Laura Elizabeth Dillon Norton. He graduated from Pembroke College and from North Carolina State University with a Master’s Degree in Chemistry. He taught school at Clio High School and helped to coach the football team. He also taught in Elizabethtown, NC and Raleigh, NC. He worked for the NC Department of Agriculture and as a forensic chemist for the NC State Bureau of Investigation. He returned to his home in Little Rock, SC, and worked side by side with his mother for many years at Norton’s BBQ in Little Rock serving delicious BBQ and home-cooked meals. He loved to watch birds, study the night sky, tinker with old clocks and work in his flowers and plants.
Norman loved working with young people and dedicated many years to teaching softball pitching and coaching softball at the recreation department, travel softball, and softball at Dillon Christian School and Dillon High School.
Norman was an active member of Main Street United Methodist Church serving as a Sunday School teacher in the George Taylor Class, a member of the Methodist Men helping to build ramps, and served on many committees. He was an active member of the Sandhills Emmaus Community.
Norman loved and cherished his family. He is survived by his wife, Katie Oleen Norton, of 41 years; his three children: Duncan (Mariel) Norton of Columbia, SC; Amanda (Alex) Gilstrap of Easley, SC, and William (Molly) Norton of Florence, SC; and his beloved canine companion, Sadie. He adored his five grandchildren; Dale and Paxton Norton, Sawyer and Maddox Gilstrap, and Olive Norton. Norman is also survived by his brothers: Dennis (Jean) Norton of Little Rock, SC, and Charles (Annette) Norton of Marathon, Fla., and nieces and nephews.
Memorials may be made to Main Street United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 229, Dillon, SC 29536.
You may sign the online guestbook at www.kannadayfuneralhome.com. You may also call Kannaday Funeral Home at 843-774-7641 and have a staff member to sign the register book on your behalf. Due to the current health crises (COVID-19) we ask for you to please practice social distancing. Direct eye contact, loving words, and a warm smile can be as meaningful to the families as a traditional handshake or hug, especially during these difficult times.
