Norma Irene Godwin

July 23, 1924 - January 8, 2018

Norma Irene Godwin, loving wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, left this world on January 8, 2018. She was 93 years old. Norma was feisty, intelligent, hilarious, and madly in love with her husband of 74 years, Ken Godwin. Norma met Ken at a skating rink when she was a teenager, was with him at The Calvin Theater the night Pearl Harbor was attacked, married him on November 20, 1943, and loyally waited for him to return from serving in the US Navy during World War II. They had one daughter, Penny Godwin Cass (Nancy), who they raised in Dearborn, MI, their home for more than ninety years. If you were “one of hers” there is nothing in this world she wouldn’t do for you. She loved animals, was a master of virtually every card game invented, and loved to travel – especially if there was a casino with video poker at the end of the day. She had a legendary sweet tooth, a surprisingly good throwing arm, and an angelic singing voice. She played croquet, badminton and baseball with her kids and grandkids, and even managed to soundly beat a few of her great-grandkids before she was called home. She dearly loved her granddaughters Shannon Cass-Calay (Robert) and Jennifer Cass Janetsky (Eric), taking great pride in their every accomplishment, and attending all their games, musical events, and school plays. When “the girls” went off to college, she sent Omaha Steaks so they would eat properly. She was delighted to live long enough to know her seven great-grandchildren: Tristan, Jenn, Julia, Danny, Jess, Gabby and Ayden. Her door was always open, a fantastic meal was always at the ready, and she didn’t mind a bit if you needed to do seven loads of laundry while you visited, and took all the Oreos when you left. She played Scrabble with her sweetie nearly every night of their long, beautiful marriage, until they could no longer see the tiles. She loved him more than words could express, and he loved her back with every fiber of his being. They shared a life together that the rest of us could only hope to emulate. We learned more from her, and their enduring love story, than we could ever hope to recount here. We are certain she was met in Heaven by her beloved dogs Dusty and Jigsy, and a whole slew of parakeets she lovingly raised – all of which were named Terry. She leaves behind her cherished cat, who she also named Terry. Goodbye for now sweet Wife, Mom, Grandma and Great-Grandma. We will miss you every day until we see you again.