Earl Ray Norman

Earl Ray Norman passed from here to his heavenly home on Saturday, August 14, 2022, with Pat, his wife of 66 years, by his side. Earl is proceeded in death by his parents, his younger brother, Colonel Dale Lee Norman, and his beloved son, Michael Ray (Bud) Norman. Earl was born in Oklahoma City, OK on December 17, 1933, to Buhl Ray and Elva Leah (Gage) Norman. He grew up in Moore, OK, graduating from Moore High School as Valedictorian (May1951). He graduated Summa Cum Laude from University of Oklahoma (January 1956) with an Electrical Engineering Degree. He was in the Air Force ROTC and achieved the rank of Colonel. Earl completed his training as an Air Force pilot at Marana Air Base in Marana, AZ and Vance Air Base in Enid, OK. As a First Lieutenant, he served as Commander of Camp O'Donnell and flew assignments in Southeast Asia out of Clark Air Base in the Philippines, where he rose to the rank of Captain. A favorite pastime of his was telling others, with great pride, that he flew his own plane to work every day. Earl's career was an illustrious one, spent mostly with Boeing Military Airplane Company in Wichita. He was General Manager of the Offensive Avionics Systems/Cruise Missile Integration Program to modernize the B-52's, supervising 23,000 employees in three state and Washington D.C. While working full-time, Earl earned two master's degrees (MBA and MS in Electrical Engineering) at Wichita State University. In 1985 he transferred to Boeing Vertol, in Philadelphia, to work on the Comanche, Blackhawk and Chinook helicopters and the V-22 Osprey. He and Pat lived in Chadds Ford, PA for 30 years before moving back to Wichita. He retired from Boeing as Corporate Director in 1996. After retirement, Earl volunteered for many years for the Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) to help struggling entrepreneurs. He and Pat also traveled the world for 15 years, visiting all but one continent, Antarctica. Earl is survived by Patsy, his loving wife of 66 years and two sons, Stephen Patrick (Cynda) of Grand Junction, CO, and Kenneth Earl (Kathleen) of Porter Ranch, CA. He leaves a brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Karl and Beverly White of Edmond, OK and sister-in-law, Pat Norman of Seguin, TX. He also leaves a multitude of nieces, nephews, grand-nieces, and grand-nephews who adored him. Earl's humor, intellect, and caring nature will be missed by all who knew and loved him. Funeral Service will be at 2:00 pm, Saturday, August 20, 2022, at Riverwalk Church of Christ, Wichita. Second Funeral Service will be at 2:00 pm, Monday, August 22, 2022, at Edmond Church of Christ, Edmond, OK. Graveside Service will follow at Memorial Park Cemetery, Oklahoma City, OK. In memoriam, please send donations to the Alzheimer’s Association, the Breast Cancer Research Foundation or the Wounded Warrior Project. Services in care of Downing & Lahey East Mortuary.