Jean May Isaacson Norris

"I'm a tough old bird" was Jean's mantra. She was determined to do everything for herself, up until she shuffled off her mortal coil on February 24, 2024, much to the chagrin of her caretakers and the terror of her family. Use her walker in her apartment? "No, I don't need it. I can use the walls." Wear her eyeglasses? "Only old people wear glasses." She was 95 years old. She was also very funny, very social and very much loved.

Jean was born in 1928 in Pontiac, Michigan to Sham, an iron worker, and Jeanette Isaacson, a homemaker. A few years later when the Great Depression gripped America, The entire extended family became itinerant workers looking for any jobs to support their families. Their travels took them from Michigan to Wisconsin into Canada and over to the Pacific Northwest. They worked their way down the Pacific Coast eventually settling in Los Angeles, the whole extended family living on the same street. In 1938 the family welcomed her sister, Nadine, and three years later her brother, Dick. Jean wore the mantle of big sister with great responsibility for the entirety of their lives.

It was in Southern California that Jean discovered her love of swimming and the ocean. She collected shells, rocks and sea grass from all the beaches she visited. They were her childhood treasures tucked away in a special box that was brought out only for very special people.

In 1941 her father got a job as a machinist on the Panama Canal working to protect it during World War II. The family lived in Army barracks that she described as a little village for Americans. They had ration books and blackouts at night to protect from any incoming aircraft. From the barrack's bathroom window Jean would watch the large ships going through the canal. It was in Panama where she contracted a bacterial infection in the bones of her foot. She was sent back to Los Angeles to stay with her Aunt Madeline who was a nurse and worked at White Memorial Hospital. After numerous surgeries her foot still hadn't healed. One day the medical staff decided to try a new miracle drug called penicillin. Her foot was healed and she rejoined her family in Panama.

Jeanette and her children returned to Los Angeles for their schooling. As a teenager Jean worked as a switchboard operator for Pacific Telephone and Telegraph. One evening in 1946 she went out bowling with girlfriends. A boy, trying to flirt, poured beer in her shoe. Another boy, a gallant young college student , was irritated at what he saw. He picked Jean up and carried her outside without her shoe. His name was John Norris and, when he returned home that night, told his mother that he'd just met the woman he would marry.

Jean married John in August of 1948 carrying her favorite flowers, white gladiolas. John was still a university student at the time of their marriage and Jean worked to help him through to his degree. She was also creating a home and building a solid community. This was something in which she would excel for the rest of her life. Their weekends were filled with beach parties at a family home in Encinitas. John and Jean welcomed their first born, Richard, in 1953. Jean's mother gave her a Siamese kitten just before the pregnancy was announced. Puddy Tat showed up in her life a year before the birth of her first son and died when Rich was studying at university. He was 21 years old. Siamese cats remained a deep and abiding love for the rest of Jean and John's life with Sue, Ta and Cha and, finally, Meow following in Puddy Tat's paw tracks.

In 1955 John was interviewed by J. Edgar Hoover and landed his dream job as a Special Agent with The Federal Bureau of Investigation. Jean's young family was about to become as adventurous and peripatetic as her early life. John served in Montana then Idaho where their second son, Tim, was born. He was then sent to New York City where they welcomed a daughter, Jennifer. There were exciting years in Manhattan with John and Jean enjoying drinks at the midtown Playboy Club where John was a Key Holder and Broadway shows afterward. At home, over the George Washington Bridge in New Jersey, Jean was, again, enlarging their community of friends with her hospitality. There were barbecues and dinner parties with other FBI agents and new friends. Their family was solid, settled and happy. And then....

In 1961, the government asked John to move again. this time Jean packed up the kids, Puddy Tat and the household and moved to San Juan, Puerto Rico. A time she would later recall as her favorite place to live. The beaches were beautiful and the trade winds were soft and warm (well, except for the hurricanes). They lived their lives outdoors, something that has stayed with all three kids throughout their lives. After a move to Ponce on the Caribbean side of the island, the backyard was ripe with limes, mangos and bananas. A new family member was added, a gentle Staffordshire Terrier named TryMe. She was the best babysitter they ever had. Certainly the most vigilant. In the early 1960's the Caribbean was a volatile place and John was in the thick of it. Jean was the steady rock of the family. She worried when John came home to pack a bag, unable to tell her where he was going or when he'd be back. The unspoken thought that he might not make it back hung over them both. Jean was determined to keep these worries from her kids and carried on as so many women have before her. When he was home there was laughter and joy with active young children, pig roasts and cocktail parties at the Officer's Club and the fears of the world melted. Jean and John expanded their already large group of friends.

Jean was again asked to pack everyone up and move in 1967. They landed in Las Vegas. The arid desert with its cold nights was a shock to everyone after years in the tropics. Their stay in Las Vegas was only two years but, again, Jean collected more friends as did her growing kids.

John was given the chance to choose where he would like to see out his career and in 1970 they chose to go north to Reno. The kids were now teenagers and the whole family dug in to their new home. The kids found their new schools and friends and set down deep roots. John and Jean hosted many parties and gatherings. One of the most memorable was the yearly Air Race weekend gathering with family from Southern California.

By now the Norris Christmas card list was vast. It grew to epic proportions in this new community. There were John's work friends, the teen's friends and family and First United Methodist Church. Jean found a group of friends who were some of the most important relationships of her life. As President of United Methodist Women for many years, her friendships lifted her as they all created life changing programs in caring for others with social justice programs. The expansive communities that she brought along with her stayed with her, comforted her and brought her great joy. Lifelong social connections, bringing people together and nurturing those friendships were her super power.

After John's retirement they had the luxury of extensive travel. Jean was able to revisit Panama and show John parts of her childhood. John was on the Nashville, a Naval ship in WWII, which took part in the surrender of Japanese forces in Shanghai. He was able to take Jean to China to share his past. They also revisited the Caribbean several times. There was also a memorable South American trip to Patagonia, Uruguay, Argentina and Chili. They loved sharing all they learned on these trips.

Jean loved all her animals: rabbits, chickens, desert tortoises, dogs but, most of all, her cats. She was an active and constant learner. Documentaries, nonfiction books and Smithsonian magazine were her jam. She loved her garden. Most of all, she loved her three children and her beloved John. They were married 70 years at the time of his passing.

Jean is predeceased by her parents, her dearest John, her sister Nadine Miller, her brother Richard Isaacson, her granddaughter Kristen Wyak Norris and great granddaughter Charlotte Amalie. She is survived by her children Rich Norris (Annie), Tim Norris and Jen Edwards (Tim), grandsons Scott Edwards (Tara) and Aaron Edwards (Katie), Duncan Machen, and great grandchildren Amelia, Jane, Alasdair, Andrew, Christopher and Vivian.

In Jean's last few years, she became part of another community that meant so much to her. After John's passing she moved to Cascades of the Sierra in Spanish Springs. She had a beautiful one bedroom apartment in Independent Living with a balcony that overlooked Peavine, Slide and Mount Rose. She would spend hours on that balcony with her old Siamese cat, Meow, watching the airplanes and the kids playing in the sports fields. Of course, she made many new friends while being visited by old friends. In October of 2023, with failing health, she moved to another apartment in Assisted Living where she could still watch the airplanes and sports fields. The family would like to express deep gratitude to all at Cascades especially Eileen, Brendy, Laurie, Lorna, Esmeralda, Christine, Katelyn, Bree, Paul, Diana and, for anyone we've missed, please forgive us. They cared for her as if she were their own. We would also like to profoundly thank Circle of Life Hospice for the expert and tender care they gave to Jean to the end: Stephanie, Michael, Liz, and Jessie. Most of all, thank you to her nurses Patrick and Jahi. We are most grateful for your skill and compassion, not just for Jean, but for the whole family.

There will be a memorial service at First United Methodist Church on Saturday, May 18th at 1:30 pm.