My Genealogy Home Page:Information about Norman Ralph Worley
Norman Ralph Worley (b. May 08, 1911, d. June 19, 2010)
Notes for Norman Ralph Worley:May 8, 1911 - June 19, 2010 Beloved husband, brother, uncle, cousin, friend to legions, ladies' man, artist, collector, writer, comedian, adventurer, hunter, financial wizard, political commentator, jack-of-all-trades and master-in-some, longtime Eureka resident, Norman Ralph Worley, died in his home on Saturday, June 19, 2010, succumbing to cancer and natural causes at the age of 99. His lovely wife, Doris, had passed away some years before. Norman was born in White City, Kansas to farmers, Norman Presley Worley and Victoria Caroline Maxwell Worley. An independent spirit, he ran away from home at 15 only to be brought back by the sheriff. Always displaying above-average intelligence, Norman graduated high school in 1928 at the age of 17 after having skipped two grades in one year. Finding no opportunities to be had during the Great Depression, Norman left home and rode trains as a hobo. In Oakland, Calif. he was quarantined with many others during an outbreak of spinal meningitis. After realizing that his days were numbered as the bodies of the quarantined were left to rot in piles around him, he used knotted bed sheets to escape the quarantine. He later found work in a traveling carnival as an animal handler/trainer. Norman was promoted to boxer after knocking out a chimpanzee that attached him and became a successful prize fighter. Later, Norman found employment as a molybdenum miner in Climax, Colorado while living in Leadville. He also found work as a copper miner in Utah. He was then drafted into the army for a short time and discharged for being too old at the age of 28 in 1939. After the Pearl Harbor attack, Norman was drafted again as an engineer and stayed in the army until the end of WWII. During his service, he landed at Normandy during heavy fighting and participated in the Battle of the Bulge. After WWII, Norman took correspondence courses, applied and was accepted as a California highway engineer. He was employed as a surveyor and stayed in this work until his retirement. In his spare time, Norman was a fisherman and an avid hunter of bear, deer and elk. He was a regular contributor to "letters to the editor" and a prolific writer of humorous poetry, jokes and witty commentary. Norman touched the lives of so many people with his tremendous sense of humor, his love of life, positive spirit and his love of literature; all of which he generously shared. Norman was a long-time active member of Chapter 24 of the Retired Public Employees Assoc. in Eureka. He devoted many hours working for the benefit of RPEA and served in most of the Offices of the Chapter. At the time of his death, he was an active Board of Directors member and had been for many years. Norman was a Life Member of the Eureka Elks (52 years to be exact). He was a huge fan of rummage and garage sales and loved to bring his friends the treasures he found. He would drive out to the Elks, have one or two high balls and drive home, or to the Moose Lodge for just one more! Norman and I worked on his family tree dating back to the Civil War where one of his Uncles was a Yankee and one Uncle was a Confederate and we joked about what the Holidays must have been like. One of my fondest memories was a dinner with Norm and my family and he said that back in his younger days he was drinking margaritas and chasing senoritas. To hear those words from a 98 year old man was priceless. Norman lived an exceptionally long time, he turned 99 May 8, 2010 and to have known him was an honor. He is going to be greatly missed by many people. Here's to Norm!! A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, July 7, 2010 at the Elks Lodge located at 445 Herrick Ave., Eureka, CA 95503-6419 (707) 442-9044/6652. A poem written by Norm R. Worley: Cancel All Tomorrows Time plods wearily across the war ravaged, family plagues, scab-lands of history, dragging the dead husks of lived-up yesterdays toward that bottomless chasm of inevitable, everlasting oblivion.
More About Norman Ralph Worley:
Burial: Unknown, Oceanview Cemetery, Eureka, California.
More About Norman Ralph Worley and Doris:
Private-Begin: Private