Norman Neal Olds

Norman Olds, 82, passed away August 9^th, 2012.  Born in 1930, Norm was the second son of Lou and Mollie Olds of Portland, Oregon.  Norman was proud to be a University of Oregon graduate and always liked being a “duck.”  He was a member of the Sigma Alpha Mu fraternity and served as President.  After college, a job as color coordinator for White Stag took him to New York for several Years.  Norm moved back to the Pacific Northwest to follow one of his passions, automobiles.  He worked in Portland, Oregon selling Mercury’s and Lincolns, and then moved north to open a Chevrolet dealership. His dad thought he was crazy to build the first car dealership in Lynnwood, Washington when Lynnwood was hardly a dot on the map, but Norm was right.  He successfully ran Norman Chevrolet until 1982.  Retirement came easy since Norm had become quite a boater through the years.  In fact, he always remembered his wedding anniversary because it was the same year he purchased his 22’ Sea Ray.

Norm didn’t plan to have children, but a beautiful widow named Karen Wailes won his heart as did her two children Wendi and Greg.  Norm married Karen and adopted the kids June 10, 1977 creating a most wonderful family.  Norm, Karen and the kids enjoyed years of boating in the San Juans, most recently on their 44’ Ocean Alexander, The Stormin’ Norman.  A simple trip to take the garbage out would be a three hour event for Norm as he always found people to talk to along the way. He had a gift for gab and a kind demeanor that allowed him to get along with most anyone.  The one thing better than being a parent was being a grandparent!  Norm cherished his two grandchildren, Kate (11) and Carson (9) Fischer.  He never would have guessed that in his 80’s he would be playing ping-pong and pool with Carson and getting his toes painted with Kate.   A few years ago Norm and Karen moved into Mirabella, a retirement community in Seattle.  He loved the staff and the residents and greatly enjoyed his view of the Space Needle.  Water aerobics, reading and doing crossword puzzles kept him busy.

Norm is survived by his beloved wife Karen, daughter Wendi and son-in-law Chad Fischer, son Greg and daughter-in-law Tray Olds, and grandchildren Kate and Carson Fischer.

A memorial service is scheduled for Thursday, August 16^th at 1:30 at the Seattle Yacht Club.  Remembrances can be made to Rotary First Harvest or the Mirabella Foundation.