Norma Louise Lanz

Norma Louise Lanz was born on July 30, 1917, in Winona, Minnesota, to Grover Cleveland Miller and Grace Elmira Pickart. She experienced loss early in life with the passing of her father, but she grew up surrounded by the love of her mother and her stepfather, Benjamin Zimmerman. Alongside her half-siblings, Evelyn, Richard, and Beverly, she spent her youth in a household that remains a source of family stories, including memories of a parent who served as the local sheriff.

Music was central to her life, as she played the organ beautifully and shared her gift by teaching others. Her music had a way of filling a room and bringing a sense of peace to those around her. When she chose to marry Robert Paul Lanz, she followed her heart despite her parents' hopes that she would not marry a farmer. Norma and Robert were wed on a Saturday evening in 1939 at the manse of the First Presbyterian Church. With the Reverend Marion L. Blake officiating, Norma stood alongside her sister Evelyn, while Edward Michalski served as best man. Dressed in a white suit adorned with gardenias, she began her new life with Robert. They traveled to northern Minnesota for a time before settling into their first home at 777 West Broadway, where Robert began his career with Montgomery Ward.

Norma and Robert built a life together that spanned thirty-eight years until his passing in 1977. They raised two children, Judy and David, and their family continued to grow over the decades. Norma was blessed to see her legacy flourish through six grandchildren, fourteen great-grandchildren, and six great-great-grandchildren.

Norma lived to the age of ninety-six, passing away in Sacramento on October 18, 2013. She is now at rest beside her husband at East Lawn Elk Grove Memorial Park in Elk Grove, California. She is remembered with love by all who knew her, reuniting now with her parents, her beloved Robert, and her dear siblings, Evelyn Ribordy, Richard Boots Zimmerman, and Beverly Tadewald.