Norma Jean Burgess peacefully crossed the veil on September 28, 2024. Norma was born on August 9, 1935 to Earl T. and Gladys E. (Powell) Marr in Yakima, Washington. She was the oldest of the five girls in her family. Her family moved to Shelton, Washington, when she was 4 years old where she attended school and graduated from Shelton High School in 1953. Her family became baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints when she was 14 years old. Thus started her complete devotion and commitment to the Church and Jesus Christ. After graduating high school, she attended Brigham Young University majoring in music. After her freshman year she returned to Shelton to earn money to return to school.
She was good friends with Fenton and Lois Burgess and often babysat their children. Fenton and Lois encouraged her to write to his brother, Mack Emett Burgess, who was stationed in Korea in the Marine Corp. After receiving his first letter, she knew he was the man for her. He returned to the States, and they became engaged that first night. Three months later they were married in the Cardston, Alberta temple and made their home in Bremerton.
Mack and Norma moved to Montana in 1958 to turn sod on land between Simms and Cascade. They lived with their family and built a four-room house with no running water or electricity. When the land was sold, they moved to Great Falls where her husband began trucking. They lived on the southwest side of Great Falls and were one of the families to live through the flood of 1964 when their home had five feet of water in it. They then moved to downtown Great Falls and eventually to Simms to start a ranch.
She designed their 6-bedroom log home and loved the ranch of 3,200 acres where they raised 500 head of cattle and had a ½ acre garden which she tended and harvested. She learned how to ride a horse and became quite a cowgirl going on cattle drives and packing into the mountains several times.
After seven years they downsized and moved to Sun Prairie on 25 acres. Norma cultivated huge flower gardens and a vegetable garden. She was always busy cleaning, tending horses, canning, freezing and gardening among other pursuits.
In 2008, they downsized again and moved to Great Falls to live with their oldest daughter, Denice, until Mack’s death in September of 2022. After his death her grand-daughter and husband, Alexis and Jace Hodgson, took care of her until June of 2024 when she moved to The Lodge and lived with her daughter, Renae, who also took care of her and was with her when she passed.
Norma had a firm testimony of the Church of Jesus of Christ of Latter-Day Saints and studied and knew the doctrine proficiently. She spent much time making sure that her children, grandchildren, and anyone she encountered knew of her commitment to the gospel. She served faithfully and held many callings including Choir Director, MIA Women’s President, Primary President, Relief Society Social Relations teacher and other callings.
Mack and Norma were called to a mission in Browning, Montana to open the branch in 1983. This calling was their great love. They became friends with many and still have ties to that community. They were both adopted into the Blackfeet Tribe by George Kickingwoman and were sponsored by Earl and Rita Spotted Eagle. Her given Blackfeet name was Good Leader Woman.
Norma was an accomplished musician and choir director. She loved directing choirs leading many church choirs. She taught many, many people to sing and perform. Anyone who had experience with her soon found out what a perfectionist she was. She taught all her children to sing and play the piano to varying degrees. She loved to sing and her family sang in the car almost nonstop.
She was also a prolific seamstress sewing clothes, costumes and quilts. Norma was also extremely artistic and could draw quite well.
She loved her grandchildren and great-grandchildren and in reality, all children. She helped to raise countless youth whom she genuinely loved and treated as her own. Anyone staying in their home was fed a hot meal and had somewhere to sleep. She never turned anyone away. She was still helping to raise babies until well into her 80’s.
Mack and Norma had seven children. Two of them died in infancy and one was adopted. She leaves Denice (Bruce) Mills of Great Falls, MT, Nanette (Bill) Hjelm of Heber, UT, Renae Burgess of Great Falls, MT, Stan (Jamie) Burgess of Nome, AK, and Merlin Middlerider of Heart Butte, MT. She also leaves many grandchildren and great-grandchildren, three sisters, Rella Morlan (Dale Lockwood), Zella Moran, and Arla (Arlin) Kohler, as well as two brothers-in-law, Fenton (Indra) Burgess and Theron (Barbara) Burgess.
Norma was preceded in death by her husband, Mack Emett Burgess, two sons, Mark Emett Burgess and Mack Emett Burgess II, her parents, Earl and Gladys Marr, two grandchildren, Mark Jacob Burgess and Nicole Jean Linn, one great-grandchild, Kendrick Dawson, and Norma’s sister, Marie Taylor.
Norma Jean Burgess was an outstanding wife (of over 67 years), mother, disciple of Christ, musician, home canner, gardener, cowgirl, and woman. She touched so many lives for the good. She will be sorely missed.
A memorial and luncheon will be held in her honor on Friday, November 29, 2024 at 1:00 PM at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 1401 9th Street NW, Great Falls, MT. Cremation has been done under the direction of Croxford Funeral Home. Flowers and condolences can be sent to www.croxfordfuneralhome.com.
Author: Staff
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