Isabell White Norris, 85, passed away peacefully on Sunday, March 12, 2017 in Virginia Beach, VA. Born May 7, 1931, high atop Highland Mountain to her late parents Cliff and Margie White, she was the youngest of six children. She was delivered by her grandmother the late Viola Ripley White. The White family ran a timber company that included a sawmill and a mercantile. The daily trip to high school entailed a two-mile walk from mountaintop Chestnut Knob along a red top road where the occasional panther cry could be heard from down the holler; this was followed by an 18 mile bus ride along twisty turning roads to Lookout, WV, where Isabell graduated as a member of the National Honor Society from Nutall High School in 1950. In September of 1953, she married the late James W. Norris, Jr. He was the love of her life. The couple moved to South Jersey in 1954, where they would raise their son and daughter. After retiring, Jimmy (Boss) wanted to return home to NC, so the couple relocated to Kinston, NC in 1981.
Baptized as a member of Chestnut Knob Baptist Church in Layland, WV, she later became a member of First Baptist Church in Woodbury, NJ and lastly at First Baptist Church in Kinston, NC.
Mrs. Norris had been employed by the Internal Revenue Service as well as for several different banking institutions in Charleston, WV, in Richmond, VA, and in Camden County, NJ. She served as treasurer of the Highland Park PTA, as Brownie troop leader for Girl Scouts of America, as treasurer of her Sunday school class, and was a member of the Order of Eastern Star. As a homemaker, she took great pride in making her house a welcoming home.
She took even more pride in her children and grandchildren. They lit up her life. Loving memories of bumper car rides at White Lake, shopping trips to the mall, eating her good food, playing Chinese checkers and horseshoes, dancing, and laughing will remain. Fiercely independent and slightly mischievous, lively and fun, determined and competitive, intelligent and generous, kind and supportive, as well as loyal and loving are just a few ways to describe her. Her family loved her dearly and her friends were loyal to the end.
Mrs. Norris was preceded in death by her husband; her parents; her sisters Alma Banta and Melba Zimmerman; her brothers Otis White, Richard White, Jr. and Calvin White; and two of her grandchildren James W. Norris, IV and Katherine Norris. Left to cherish her memory are her son James W. Norris, III and wife Ruthie of Pilesgrove, NJ and her daughter Brenda N. Pidgeon and husband William of Norfolk, VA as well as her six surviving grandchildren Emily Hoglen and husband Chad of Pennsville, NJ; Jonathan Pidgeon and wife Megan of Key West, FL; Jesse Norris of Pilesgrove, NJ; Nicole Skees and husband Charles of Norfolk, VA; Jason Norris of Pilesgrove, NJ; and Anna Pidgeon and fiancé Harrison Tyler of Norfolk, VA. Loving sister-in-laws, nieces, nephews, and a host of long-time friends mourn her passing.
The family would like to thank the caregivers at Providence Place, Allzwell Assisted Living, Beacon Shores, and Sentara Hospice Place for their thoughtful, loving, and skilled care. A special note of thanks is extended to Paula Taylor and Linda Arrington of Allzwell. Your kindness will not be forgotten.
The family will receive friends and family on Monday, March 13, from 5 to 7 in the home of Bill and Brenda Pidgeon. Funeral services will be at First Baptist Church, 2600 Rouse Rd, Kinston, NC on Tuesday, March 14, at 10:00. Burial will follow at Westview Cemetery, Kinston, NC. Arrangements are through H D Oliver Funeral Apartments in Virginia Beach, VA.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to First Baptist Church of Kinston, NC. Online condolences may be made to the family at hdoliver.com.
Baptized as a member of Chestnut Knob Baptist Church in Layland, WV, she later became a member of First Baptist Church in Woodbury, NJ and lastly at First Baptist Church in Kinston, NC.
Mrs. Norris had been employed by the Internal Revenue Service as well as for several different banking institutions in Charleston, WV, in Richmond, VA, and in Camden County, NJ. She served as treasurer of the Highland Park PTA, as Brownie troop leader for Girl Scouts of America, as treasurer of her Sunday school class, and was a member of the Order of Eastern Star. As a homemaker, she took great pride in making her house a welcoming home.
She took even more pride in her children and grandchildren. They lit up her life. Loving memories of bumper car rides at White Lake, shopping trips to the mall, eating her good food, playing Chinese checkers and horseshoes, dancing, and laughing will remain. Fiercely independent and slightly mischievous, lively and fun, determined and competitive, intelligent and generous, kind and supportive, as well as loyal and loving are just a few ways to describe her. Her family loved her dearly and her friends were loyal to the end.
Mrs. Norris was preceded in death by her husband; her parents; her sisters Alma Banta and Melba Zimmerman; her brothers Otis White, Richard White, Jr. and Calvin White; and two of her grandchildren James W. Norris, IV and Katherine Norris. Left to cherish her memory are her son James W. Norris, III and wife Ruthie of Pilesgrove, NJ and her daughter Brenda N. Pidgeon and husband William of Norfolk, VA as well as her six surviving grandchildren Emily Hoglen and husband Chad of Pennsville, NJ; Jonathan Pidgeon and wife Megan of Key West, FL; Jesse Norris of Pilesgrove, NJ; Nicole Skees and husband Charles of Norfolk, VA; Jason Norris of Pilesgrove, NJ; and Anna Pidgeon and fiancé Harrison Tyler of Norfolk, VA. Loving sister-in-laws, nieces, nephews, and a host of long-time friends mourn her passing.
The family would like to thank the caregivers at Providence Place, Allzwell Assisted Living, Beacon Shores, and Sentara Hospice Place for their thoughtful, loving, and skilled care. A special note of thanks is extended to Paula Taylor and Linda Arrington of Allzwell. Your kindness will not be forgotten.
The family will receive friends and family on Monday, March 13, from 5 to 7 in the home of Bill and Brenda Pidgeon. Funeral services will be at First Baptist Church, 2600 Rouse Rd, Kinston, NC on Tuesday, March 14, at 10:00. Burial will follow at Westview Cemetery, Kinston, NC. Arrangements are through H D Oliver Funeral Apartments in Virginia Beach, VA.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to First Baptist Church of Kinston, NC. Online condolences may be made to the family at hdoliver.com.
Isabell White Norris, 85, passed away peacefully on Sunday, March 12, 2017 in Virginia Beach, VA. Born May 7, 1931, high atop Highland Mountain to her late parents Cliff and Margie White, she was the youngest of six children. She was delivered by her grandmother the late Viola Ripley White. The White family ran a timber company that included a sawmill and a mercantile. The daily trip to high school entailed a two-mile walk from mountaintop Chestnut Knob along a red top road where the occasional panther cry could be heard from down the holler; this was followed by an 18 mile bus ride along twisty turning roads to Lookout, WV, where Isabell graduated as a member of the National Honor Society from Nutall High School in 1950. In September of 1953, she married the late James W. Norris, Jr. He was the love of her life. The couple moved to South Jersey in 1954, where they would raise their son and daughter. After retiring, Jimmy (Boss) wanted to return home to NC, so the couple relocated to Kinston, NC in 1981.
Baptized as a member of Chestnut Knob Baptist Church in Layland, WV, she later became a member of First Baptist Church in Woodbury, NJ and lastly at First Baptist Church in Kinston, NC.
Mrs. Norris had been employed by the Internal Revenue Service as well as for several different banking institutions in Charleston, WV, in Richmond, VA, and in Camden County, NJ. She served as treasurer of the Highland Park PTA, as Brownie troop leader for Girl Scouts of America, as treasurer of her Sunday school class, and was a member of the Order of Eastern Star. As a homemaker, she took great pride in making her house a welcoming home.
She took even more pride in her children and grandchildren. They lit up her life. Loving memories of bumper car rides at White Lake, shopping trips to the mall, eating her good food, playing Chinese checkers and horseshoes, dancing, and laughing will remain. Fiercely independent and slightly mischievous, lively and fun, determined and competitive, intelligent and generous, kind and supportive, as well as loyal and loving are just a few ways to describe her. Her family loved her dearly and her friends were loyal to the end.
Mrs. Norris was preceded in death by her husband; her parents; her sisters Alma Banta and Melba Zimmerman; her brothers Otis White, Richard White, Jr. and Calvin White; and two of her grandchildren James W. Norris, IV and Katherine Norris. Left to cherish her memory are her son James W. Norris, III and wife Ruthie of Pilesgrove, NJ and her daughter Brenda N. Pidgeon and husband William of Norfolk, VA as well as her six surviving grandchildren Emily Hoglen and husband Chad of Pennsville, NJ; Jonathan Pidgeon and wife Megan of Key West, FL; Jesse Norris of Pilesgrove, NJ; Nicole Skees and husband Charles of Norfolk, VA; Jason Norris of Pilesgrove, NJ; and Anna Pidgeon and fiancé Harrison Tyler of Norfolk, VA. Loving sister-in-laws, nieces, nephews, and a host of long-time friends mourn her passing.
The family would like to thank the caregivers at Providence Place, Allzwell Assisted Living, Beacon Shores, and Sentara Hospice Place for their thoughtful, loving, and skilled care. A special note of thanks is extended to Paula Taylor and Linda Arrington of Allzwell. Your kindness will not be forgotten.
The family will receive friends and family on Monday, March 13, from 5 to 7 in the home of Bill and Brenda Pidgeon. Funeral services will be at First Baptist Church, 2600 Rouse Rd, Kinston, NC on Tuesday, March 14, at 10:00. Burial will follow at Westview Cemetery, Kinston, NC. Arrangements are through H D Oliver Funeral Apartments in Virginia Beach, VA.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to First Baptist Church of Kinston, NC. Online condolences may be made to the family at hdoliver.com.
Baptized as a member of Chestnut Knob Baptist Church in Layland, WV, she later became a member of First Baptist Church in Woodbury, NJ and lastly at First Baptist Church in Kinston, NC.
Mrs. Norris had been employed by the Internal Revenue Service as well as for several different banking institutions in Charleston, WV, in Richmond, VA, and in Camden County, NJ. She served as treasurer of the Highland Park PTA, as Brownie troop leader for Girl Scouts of America, as treasurer of her Sunday school class, and was a member of the Order of Eastern Star. As a homemaker, she took great pride in making her house a welcoming home.
She took even more pride in her children and grandchildren. They lit up her life. Loving memories of bumper car rides at White Lake, shopping trips to the mall, eating her good food, playing Chinese checkers and horseshoes, dancing, and laughing will remain. Fiercely independent and slightly mischievous, lively and fun, determined and competitive, intelligent and generous, kind and supportive, as well as loyal and loving are just a few ways to describe her. Her family loved her dearly and her friends were loyal to the end.
Mrs. Norris was preceded in death by her husband; her parents; her sisters Alma Banta and Melba Zimmerman; her brothers Otis White, Richard White, Jr. and Calvin White; and two of her grandchildren James W. Norris, IV and Katherine Norris. Left to cherish her memory are her son James W. Norris, III and wife Ruthie of Pilesgrove, NJ and her daughter Brenda N. Pidgeon and husband William of Norfolk, VA as well as her six surviving grandchildren Emily Hoglen and husband Chad of Pennsville, NJ; Jonathan Pidgeon and wife Megan of Key West, FL; Jesse Norris of Pilesgrove, NJ; Nicole Skees and husband Charles of Norfolk, VA; Jason Norris of Pilesgrove, NJ; and Anna Pidgeon and fiancé Harrison Tyler of Norfolk, VA. Loving sister-in-laws, nieces, nephews, and a host of long-time friends mourn her passing.
The family would like to thank the caregivers at Providence Place, Allzwell Assisted Living, Beacon Shores, and Sentara Hospice Place for their thoughtful, loving, and skilled care. A special note of thanks is extended to Paula Taylor and Linda Arrington of Allzwell. Your kindness will not be forgotten.
The family will receive friends and family on Monday, March 13, from 5 to 7 in the home of Bill and Brenda Pidgeon. Funeral services will be at First Baptist Church, 2600 Rouse Rd, Kinston, NC on Tuesday, March 14, at 10:00. Burial will follow at Westview Cemetery, Kinston, NC. Arrangements are through H D Oliver Funeral Apartments in Virginia Beach, VA.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to First Baptist Church of Kinston, NC. Online condolences may be made to the family at hdoliver.com.
Inscription
MOTHER
ISABELL WHITE
WIFE OF JAMES W. NORRIS, JR.
MAY 7, 1931
OES
MAR. 12, 2017
