Vincent Francis Norton's Obituary
Vincent Francis Norton (91) passed away peacefully in Miami, Florida on Monday, July 23 in the company of his loving daughter, Robin Vee Norton Burr and family at the University of Miami Hospice Center.
He was born in Kingston, NY on June 4, 1921 to Anna and John Norton of Kingston. His brothers William and Gary, along with sister Florence (Peggy) predeceased him.
Vince graduated Kingston High School in June, 1939, he spend much of his youth as a YMCA swimming instructor.
Vince was most proud of his service to his country, enlisting as a Private in the US Air Force in 1941, serving until 1946. He attended Officer Candidate School on Miami Beach in 1943, rising through the ranks in active duty in the China-Burema-India Theatre to the rank of Captain. Vince was in charge of 50 to 60 men working on air craft maintenance and scheduling aircraft ready for take off services. He attended the Casey Jones School of Aeronautics.
After the war, Vince married his lovely bride Bette Tervay and graduated Sienna College with his BS Economics in 1951 and attended Boston College as a Law Major for two years. Their daughter Robin was born on Christmas Day of 1955.
A life-long expert in the field of insurance, Vince joined Travelers Insurance Company in 1951 in New York City. He was subsequently transferred to Newburgh upstate and worked as a Claims Adjuster in four counties handling all types of claims. He was transferred to their Miami office as a Supervisor from 1967 and took early retirement in 1978.
Not one to sit about idle, Vince went to work for Parliament Insurance as Claims Manager in January, 1978 which later became Kent Insurance. He rose to the position of Vice President of Claims until 1986, overseeing 150 employees.
In 1986, at the age of 75, Vince became an independant contracter and worked through 1995, mainly settling claims after the Hurricane Andrew disaster of 1992.
Vince and Bette moved to Ocala to enjoyed the leisurely pace of central Florida in 2004 until Bette passed away in 2009, at which time Vince moved back to South Florida to live near his daughter Robin.
Vincent especially loved poetry, swimming and running and wrote many of his own poems. He enjoyed physical work such as mowing the lawn, and had a great talent for construction projects such as building additions on his homes and replacing the roof.
Vincent is survived by his daughter Robin, sister-in-law Peggy Szymanski, his God Daughter and niece Lily (Patty) Norton, and grandson Robert Vincent Burr.
A Celebration of his Life will commence at 1pm on Saturday, August 4 at Van Orsdel Chapel, 4600 SW 8th Street, Miami, Florida.
His ashes will be interned next to his wife and mother-in-law at the family mausoleum at Cedar Hill in Newburgh, New York.
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