1962

Constituents Deceased list

Norman Wooldridge MBA ’62 was born on Feb. 15, 1934, in San Mateo. He developed interests as a boy in the great outdoors, photography, and woodworking—all of which came to play in his later retirement. Norm attended college at the University of Colorado, followed by two years of military service and graduation from Stanford in engineering. After marriage to Nancy Burrows, and further study at SCU, he pursued a business career, first in San Jose, and then in Iowa. After selling his business and moving to the Pacific Northwest, he was known in early retirement years as a primary leader in the movement toward Bainbridge Island all-Island government. Continuing his involvement in local civic life, he became a two-term member of the city council. During that time, he served on every committee, always evaluating public input and putting “the right thing to do” before political popularity. The Bainbridge Island Review once described him as a “Thomas Jefferson clone” for his ability to listen more than he spoke. Skiing was always high on Norm’s extracurricular list. He taught skiing in college at the University of Colorado and served on ski patrol briefly at Squaw Valley. Ski vacations with Nan and their four boys were always a part of every winter as they explored many locations in the U.S., Canada, and Switzerland. Norm loved the craft of woodworking, making fine furniture, and sculpting special pieces. Biking too became an everyday, and sometimes vacation, activity. He took up photography in earnest with the Bainbridge Island Photo Club. Combined with travel, this became his greatest passion in retirement days. He received many accolades for an exhibit last September at Bainbridge Performing Arts titled “Journeys,” in which he showed landscapes and people from Nepal, China, and America. Inspired by images that hang in his office taken by his grandfather, a superb amateur photographer, Norm said, “From China to Turkey to the streets of France, these rendered images remind us of our shared humanity as well as the ethnic and cultural diversity of the world in which we live.” At age 78, Norm passed away peacefully at home on June 11, 2018. He is survived by his wife, Nan, of 53 years; sons Tod, Frank, Scott, and Rob; their spouses, Leslie, Jill, and Christine; grandchildren Penn, Tucker, and Bailey; sister and brother-in-law Pat and Jim Toole; and eight nephews and nieces.

31 Jan 2019