James Edwin Norem

Jim Norem passed away peacefully on December 25, 2019 at the age of 96, surrounded by family. He was born in Newark, Illinois on February 26, 1923. He was preceded in death by his wife of 59 years, Virginia [Hrubant] Norem in 2016.

Jim was a midwest farm boy at heart, but had a great sense of adventure, and loved to travel.   In 1943, he joined the Army Air Corp and flew C47’s primarily in Italy as well as flying C54’s, pulling two gliders at a time during WWII. After the war, he attended Purdue University while also working as a flight instructor and charter pilot at the Purdue University Airport.

From 1952 to 1983, he worked as a commercial pilot for TWA, flying a multitude of planes starting with DC3’s, Martin 404’s, DC4’s, Constellations and Convair 880’s. He moved on to Boeing 707’s and Lockheed 1011’s, and finally ended his career flying international on Boeing 747’s.

While flying commmercially, Jim met his wife, Ginny, who also worked for TWA. They married and, after living in various locations around the states, they settled on a ranch in Napa, California where they raised five children and had a myriad of animals including cows, horses, pigs, dogs, cats, rabbits and even a deer! No stray was ever turned away.

After the children had grown, Jim and Ginny spent the next 14 years in Oregon raising Beefmaster cattle on a ranch in Roseburg, and in 2000, they moved back down to Santa Rosa, California to be closer to family.

Jim was an avid golfer and continued golfing up until 95 years old, when he finally, and with much sorrow, retired his clubs. He enjoyed attending a monthly pilots luncheon that included a broad spectrum of pilots from WWII as well as the Korean War and Vietnam.

Family & friends are invited to attend a "Celebration of Jim's Life" on Sunday, February 9, 2020 at 10:30 A.M. at Bethlehem Lutheran Church (1300 St. Francis Road, Santa Rosa, CA, 95409). The family suggests memorial contributions be sent to the Redwood Empire Food Bank (3990 Brickway Blvd., Santa Rosa, CA, 95403).

Bethlehem Lutheran Church