Norm was born Norman Floyd Foster on December 9, 1939 in Bell, California to William and Virginia. He was a big brother to his sister Edna. Sadly, he lost his dad to a plane crash when he was 17.
He is also preceded in death by his mother, grandparents, Uncle Warren, Aunt Hazel and Uncle Noel, cousin Roy, and brother-in-law.
He is survived by his wife of 47 years, Sue, their children Tori, Cari, and Ryan, grandchildren, Jacinee, Bryan and Jayden, sister Edna, nephews, William, Justin and Travis, and cousins Luana, Terry, and Stan.
He graduated from Huntington Park High School in 1957 and promptly joined the military. He proudly served in the United States Air Force, stationed mainly at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada. He was a "high octane jet petroleum fuel administrator" (his words…he refueled jet aircraft). While serving in the military, he really enjoyed attending many Baptist church camps, Bible Studies and activities. He was the camp clown (fondly naming himself Orbie Cork) and immensely enjoyed making others laugh.
He proudly walked his sister down the aisle on July 2, 1960 when she married Billy Robbins.
After the service, he worked as an orderly at a hospital in Reno with his friend, Dale. In keeping with his fun loving personality, he made it a goal to keep the patients and staff laughing. Although he spoke fondly of this time in his life, he developed a strong dislike of hospitals in later years and hated to even visit them.
He began attending the Worldwide Church of God in 1966 and made friends that he never forgot. He "dragged" his girlfriend to services, but she soon realized that this was what both of them wanted, and they were later baptized on the same day. Norm continued a life of service to others and was dedicated to that until the day he died.
On March 18, 1967, in Anaheim, California, he married his sweetheart (same girl), Sue Prentice. He was at the birth of their three children in their home in Long Beach (the doctor was there too). He enjoyed sharing the story of each child being born in a different room of the house; one in the kitchen, one in the bedroom and one in living room. Their kids, Tori, Cari and David (now known as Ryan) were the light of his life. Ryan says he "survived his children" instead of the other way around though. But what child doesn't give a parent a few scares? He very much loved his family and longed to be a good provider; and he was. In addition, he took the family on many trips and told endless stories about them. They traveled to Squaw Valley, Vale, Wisconsin Dells, Corpus Christi and Victoria, Canada, amongst others.
He bought his first home in Placentia, California. Norm worked in transportation sales, and was very successful. In 1972 he was awarded Salesman of the year.
After 3-1/2 years in Placentia, he asked for a transfer to the Salt Lake City area so his children could be in a safer school district. He says his kids were hearing things about LSD in California, but came home from school in Sandy and told him they were still hearing about LSD; turns out, they actually heard "LDS". He thought that was really cute!
While working, he traveled more for business than he wanted to for the family but he was later able to start his own business by selling the airline miles he accumulated (it was legal at the time!).
Norm was ordained a deacon and later a local elder. The church had many changes but in recent years, he enjoyed speaking and leading worship music in the Grace Fellowship Church in Murray. He truly loved the church family as his own.
He became a grandfather on January 29, 1992 when his granddaughter Jacinee was born. The day she gave grandpa her first smile, their bond could not be broken. On August 9, 1996, he was blessed with a grandson, Bryan, and on July 7, 1997, another grandson, Jayden was born. He was a very proud grandpa and the pride could be seen on his face each time he saw or thought of his grandkids.
On February 14, 1989, Norm began his own company, Transportation Network Systems, Inc (TNS). He was proud to own a successful business. He always had a strong business sense and work ethic, and taught this to his children.
Norm always dreamed of having a convertible, and he was able to make this a reality. He loved cruising around town, even if it was just for his daily visit to McDonald's to read the morning paper, or one of his frequent trips to Walmart to find that perfect bargain. He also made many visits to the mountains, and enjoyed picnic lunches and playing dice with Sue.
On January 19, 2010, after months of planning and preparation, Norm began retirement. As he found out, this was the best decision he could've made. He was heard making the statement, "If you ever get the chance to retire, I highly recommend it".
He enjoyed watching college football and basketball, and a few of the professional teams; he NEVER gave up on the Rams!
He loved watching TV (his top choices were westerns, sports and cooking shows) and relaxing at home; but he also enjoyed travelling with Sue. They went on trips to Germany, Barbados, Paradise Island, Florida, and Mexico. They cruised in Alaska, Hawaii and the Caribbean. They especially enjoyed their relaxing trips to Vegas and LOVED Hawaii.
Not enough can be said about the joy and the strength that Norm gave to his family and friends. He is truly loved and admired, and will be deeply missed.
