Supercentenarian Profile

Norma McMenamin

Born:

1902-04-11

Charlotte, North Carolina

United States

Died:

2012-05-23

High Point, North Carolina

United States

Norma McMenamin (née Rogers) was an American supercentenarian.

BIOGRAPHY

Norma McMenamin was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, USA, on 11 April 1902, to parents Joseph Alexander Rogers and Adelaide Rebecca Bissell (1867–1951). She had eight siblings: John, Joseph, Banks Corbett (1892–1972), Charles Spring (1893–1968), Adrian Worth (1897–1974), Dennis Bissell (1900–1997), Ruth Doss (1905–1990), and Eunice Makasiar (1908–2013).

She attended King’s Business College in Charlotte. In the 1920s, the family relocated to Greensboro, where Norma worked as a cashier at the O’Henry Hotel. There, she met David James “Mac” McMenamin of Horsham, Pennsylvania. Norma moved to Horsham to receive Catholic instruction, and David and Norma were married on 5 June 1930.

They built a family in Horsham and had three sons: David, Joseph, and John. In 1935, Mac’s career took the family to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where they lived for more than five years. While in Brazil, the family suffered the loss of their son David, who died from spinal meningitis. The family later lived in New Orleans, where their son John was tragically killed in an accident. Following this loss, Norma and Joseph moved back to Greensboro, where she operated a laundromat.

Norma and Joseph traveled across the country to San Francisco in Joseph’s yellow convertible and spent several days there before Joseph’s Navy career took him to Oahu, Hawaii. While serving in the Navy, Joseph died after his plane went down in the Pacific Ocean. Norma joined Archdale Friends Meeting and was active in the Elizabeth Frye Sunday School Class for many years. She had a lifelong passion for needlework and growing flowers, continuing to enjoy both as long as she was able.

Norma McMenamin passed away in High Point, North Carolina, on 23 May 2012, at the age of 110 years, 42 days.