Reverend Norman E. Booth

Reverend Norman Edward Booth passed away on August 25, 2016. He was born in Cohoes, New York, on July 24, 1930. Norman spent his childhood in Southern California and graduated in 1952 from Los Angeles State College, where he lettered in track and cross-country, with a Bachelor of Arts degree. In 1953, he enlisted in the United States Navy as a Naval Aviation Cadet and completed his flight training at Pensacola Naval Air Station. While in Pensacola, he met his wife, Angeline (Ann) Canterbury. They married on September 4, 1955, in Panama City, Florida. In 1956 Norman completed Naval Air Intelligence School in Washington, D.C., and then served as an Air Intelligence Officer with the VF-101 Fighter Squadron in Jacksonville, Key West, and aboard the U.S.S. Saratoga. He was released to inactive duty in 1958. Following his service in the Navy, Norman attended Emory University and received his Master of Divinity degree in 1960. He began his career as a Methodist minister while a divinity student and served several rural churches in Southern Georgia. Then Rev. Booth served churches in Jacksonville and Jasper Florida. In 1965 he came to Tallahassee to organize Gray Memorial United Methodist Church and begin graduate studies at Florida State University. He received a Master of Arts in History in 1971 and continued post-graduate work in education curriculum. In 1966, Norman accepted a position at Leon High School, where he taught history and economics until his retirement in 1996. During his tenure at Leon, where he chaired the Social Studies Department and served as Senior Class Sponsor, Mr. Booth touched thousands of young lives. Norman continued to serve in the Florida United Methodist Conference as pastor of “Old” Pisgah United Methodist Church from 1971 to 1986. In his dual roles as minister and historian, Norman authored histories of Trinity United Methodist Church and Pisgah United Methodist Church. Through his efforts, Pisgah UMC was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in July of 1974, and in 1986 the Florida Annual Conference voted to list Pisgah UMC as an official “site” of the United Methodist Church. In his retirement years, Norman and his wife Ann were active at the Tallahassee Senior Center as both participants and volunteers. They particularly enjoyed the square dancing and round dance programs at the Senior Center and attended numerous dance festivals and workshops throughout the Southeast. Norman and Ann were selected as Silver Stars by the Tallahassee Senior Center and Foundation in 2010 in recognition of active aging. Norman is survived by his wife of 61 years, Ann Canterbury Booth. He also leaves behind two daughters and one son and two grandchildren: Dana Booth Ferrell and her husband Bob, Angie Booth, and her partner Rachelle Denmark, and David Booth and his wife Alexis and their two children, Connor and Amelia. The funeral service will be held at Trinity United Methodist Church on August 31 2016, at 2:00 pm. The family will receive guests immediately following the service at the church. Interment will take place in Panama City, Florida, at 10:00 a.m. Central Standard Time on Thursday, September 1, 2016, at Evergreen Memorial Gardens. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Alzheimer’s Project, Inc. at 301 East Tharpe Street, Tallahassee, Florida, 32303. Kelly Barber of Bevis Funeral Home (850-385-2193, www.bevisfh.com) is assisting the Booth family with their arrangements.

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Reverend Norman E. Booth

July 24, 1930 - August 25, 2016