Norma Bussell's Obituary
Norma Bussell passed away on November 29, 2018 at Grand Pines Assisted Living Center in Grand Haven. Norma was born on July 16, 1920, to Jesse and Mabel (née Lacey) Edwards in Bushnell Township near Sheridan, Michigan.
On June 25, 1941, she married Mervin Bussell in Lakeview, Michigan. She and Merv enjoyed seventy-three years of marriage until he passed away in December 2014. Norma is survived by three sons: Bill and Chris of Grand Haven, Tom and Barb of Warsaw, Indiana, and Jerry and Cheryl of Saginaw, and daughter-in-law Linda Bussell of Lowell. Norma also has 13 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren. Norma's oldest son, John, predeceased her in June 2016.
Norma is also survived by her sisters-in-law Frances Edwards, Helen Edwards, and Shirley Edwards. She was predeceased by her parents, nine brothers: William, Clayton, Howard, Merland, Dale, Duane, Donald, Harold, Kenneth, and four sisters: Opal Wickerham, Maxine Gilman, Lorraine Fike, and Elaine Edwards.
In her youth, Norma attended Mud Lake School, a country school in Montcalm County's Evergreen Township. Norma completed her secondary education as an adult and then graduated from Montcalm Community College's Licensed Practical Nursing program in 1971. Norma was an accomplished seamstress and made many of her own clothes. She also enjoyed various forms of crafting, ranging from decorative, water color, acrylic, and oil painting, and making Teddy Bears. Many shut-ins received one of her Teddy Bears as recuperation gifts. Unfortunately, macular degeneration took most of her vision and she was unable to sew and craft in her later years.
Norma lived most of her life in Montcalm County with short absences in southeast Michigan while Merv served in the U.S. Coast Guard during WWII, a short period in the 1940's when Norma, Merv, and John lived in Alto, Michigan, and during the early 1950's when the family lived in Reed City, Michigan. Norma was a member of First Congregational Church in Stanton since 1953.
The family appreciates the affectionate care provided in Norma's later days by Green Acres Assisted Living in Greenville, Grand Pines Assisted Living in Grand Haven, and Kindred Hospice. Visitation will be held at the Brigham Funeral Chapel, 413 E. Gilson Street, Edmore on Monday, December 3,2018 from 5-8 PM. Pastor Jamie Nichols will officiate at Norma's funeral service at the First Congregational Church, 305 N. Camburn Street in Stanton on Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 11 AM.
Memorial gifts are suggested, in lieu of flowers, to
a) First Congregation Church, P.O. Box 926, Stanton, MI 48888
b) Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired, 456 Cherry St. SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49503
c) White Pine District Library, 106 E. Walnut Street, Stanton, MI 48888
Condolences to the family may be made utilizing the guestbook at www.brighamfuneralchapel.com
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