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NORMA DESANTIS TITCOMB October 27, 1926 - October 6, 2015 Norma Titcomb (nee Norma Mary DeSantis,) a former Deputy Attorney General for the State of Hawaii, passed away on Monday at her home surrounded by family. Norma was born in Brooklyn, N.Y., the daughter of Sicilian immigrants. Her father, Louis DeSantis, was first clarinet for the St. Louis Symphony, the Cleveland Orchestra, and the Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra. As did her older brothers Paul and Richard, Norma studied piano and clarinet, but she also liked to mix it up on the netball court during high school and on the flag football field in law school. Norma attended Cornell University, where she met Frederick James Titcomb (1923-2000), a handsome, young World War II veteran, who would go on to become a prominent Honolulu attorney, district court judge, and part time film actor. After raising 5 children, Norma became active in women's issues. As Chairperson of the Hawaii Task Force on Sex Bias in Education, she drafted a report that became the blueprint for mandating equality of opportunities for boys and girls in Hawaii public schools. The experience piqued her interest in the law. At the tender age of 50, when her children had grown, and while most people her age were planning for their retirement, Norma applied to the William S. Richardson School of Law. Her application was initially declined because of her advanced age. The response of our Sicilian matriarch was to argue that their decision was arbitrary and discriminatory, and the University of Hawaii wisely offered her a seat in the class of 1979. At that time, she was the second oldest law school graduate. Norma worked for the Office of the Public Defender before becoming a Hawaii State Deputy Attorney General in the litigation division, in which capacity she appeared before the State Appellate Court on several occasions. After 17 years in service to the state, she followed her former boss Warren Price into private practice, where she continued to practice until her (second) retirement in 2005. During the ensuing ten years what Norma enjoyed most was seeing her 5 children, (Jim Titcomb, Carol Titcomb, Bill Titcomb, Laura Goode, and Bobby Titcomb) 16 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren, all of whom survive her in a world left emptier with her passing. Please join us in a celebration of life on Saturday, October 17, 2015 at 2 PM at the family home in Mokuleia. 68-1027 Farrington Highway Waialua, Hi 96791. In lieu of flowers or gifts the family asks that donations be made in her memory, care of "The Norma Titcomb Scholarship Endowment at the William S. Richardson School of Law" payable to the UH Foundation, and either mailed to P.O. Box 11270, Honolulu, HI 96828-0270 or processed online at www.uhfoundation.org/make-gift.
NORMA DESANTIS TITCOMB October 27, 1926 - October 6, 2015 Norma Titcomb (nee Norma Mary DeSantis,) a former Deputy Attorney General for the State of Hawaii, passed away on Monday at her home surrounded by family. Norma was born in Brooklyn, N.Y., the daughter of Sicilian immigrants. Her father, Louis DeSantis, was first clarinet for the St. Louis Symphony, the Cleveland Orchestra, and the Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra. As did her older brothers Paul and Richard, Norma studied piano and clarinet, but she also liked to mix it up on the netball court during high school and on the flag football field in law school. Norma attended Cornell University, where she met Frederick James Titcomb (1923-2000), a handsome, young World War II veteran, who would go on to become a prominent Honolulu attorney, district court judge, and part time film actor. After raising 5 children, Norma became active in women's issues. As Chairperson of the Hawaii Task Force on Sex Bias in Education, she drafted a report that became the blueprint for mandating equality of opportunities for boys and girls in Hawaii public schools. The experience piqued her interest in the law. At the tender age of 50, when her children had grown, and while most people her age were planning for their retirement, Norma applied to the William S. Richardson School of Law. Her application was initially declined because of her advanced age. The response of our Sicilian matriarch was to argue that their decision was arbitrary and discriminatory, and the University of Hawaii wisely offered her a seat in the class of 1979. At that time, she was the second oldest law school graduate. Norma worked for the Office of the Public Defender before becoming a Hawaii State Deputy Attorney General in the litigation division, in which capacity she appeared before the State Appellate Court on several occasions. After 17 years in service to the state, she followed her former boss Warren Price into private practice, where she continued to practice until her (second) retirement in 2005. During the ensuing ten years what Norma enjoyed most was seeing her 5 children, (Jim Titcomb, Carol Titcomb, Bill Titcomb, Laura Goode, and Bobby Titcomb) 16 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren, all of whom survive her in a world left emptier with her passing. Please join us in a celebration of life on Saturday, October 17, 2015 at 2 PM at the family home in Mokuleia. 68-1027 Farrington Highway Waialua, Hi 96791. In lieu of flowers or gifts the family asks that donations be made in her memory, care of "The Norma Titcomb Scholarship Endowment at the William S. Richardson School of Law" payable to the UH Foundation, and either mailed to P.O. Box 11270, Honolulu, HI 96828-0270 or processed online at www.uhfoundation.org/make-gift.
Our deepest condolences to the family and friends of the deceased
