Norman A. Bice, 86, DePeyster

A Funeral Service for Norman A. Bice, age 86, of DePeyster, will be held on Wednesday, December 13, 2023, at 12 p.m. at the Fox & Murray Funeral Home with the Reverend Tom Nichols officiating. Burial will follow at the Hillcrest Cemetery in Heuvelton.

Calling hours will be held also on December 13, 2023, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. prior to the service.

Norman passed away peacefully and quietly on Friday, December 8, 2023, at Claxton Hepburn Medical Center in Ogdensburg with his son and daughter at his bedside and holding his hands.

He is survived by two sons, Bryan (Lauren Clamurro) Bice of San Antonio, Texas, and Sean (Pamela) Bice of Granville, Ohio; a daughter, Shannon (Petter) Olsson of Borlänge, Sweden; grandchildren, Kelsea (Karl) Heiman, Samuel Bice, and Grace Olsson; one great-grandchild, Gary Heiman; two sisters, Nancy (Allen) Bell of Heuvelton and Sonja (Don) Wolfe of Jacksonville, North Carolina; two brothers-in-law, Phillip Parish of Palm Bay, Florida, and Neil (Helen) Parish of College Station, Texas; two sisters-in-law, Sharon (Robert) Murdock of DePeyster and Marilyn (David) Mullen of Gouverneur; along with many nieces, nephews & cousins.

He was predeceased by two brothers, Garry Bice and George Bice; five sisters, Janet Shatraw, Lillian Masters, Maxine Davis, Sandra Tynan, and Cheryl Madlin; two sisters-in-law, Lois Alguire and Barbara Price; and a grandson, Andrew Bice.

Norman was born on August 4, 1937, in Brier Hill, the son of the late George and Frances (Waldo) Bice. He graduated from Lisbon Central School in 1956. He was later married to Joyce (Parish) Bice on June 12, 1959, and they lived in DePeyster in the former schoolhouse his wife attended as a child, which the couple remodeled as their family home.

Norman served in the U.S. Navy as a flight crewman navigator from 1955 to 1958, primarily aboard a Lockheed P2V Neptune aircraft. After being honorably discharged from service, Norman worked at Diamond National in Ogdensburg for a short while before beginning a 30-year career as an engineer for ACCO International, also in Ogdensburg. During his career, he was responsible for developing multiple patents for machinery utilized in ACCO production facilities worldwide.

Norman was well-known throughout the North Country as an accomplished woodworker, and after retirement from ACCO hundreds of local graduates received a handmade cedar chest made by Norman at their graduation ceremony. In addition, Norman was ordained as a United Methodist minister where he served first at Galilee, and then later at Morristown and Ogdensburg United Methodist Churches.

In addition to his service in the United Methodist Church, he was also a member of Lions Club International, a distinguished Mason, and a Scoutmaster in the DePeyster Boy Scout Troop. He was a gifted orator, and many in the North Country had the pleasure of listening to his recitations of poems like “The Railroad Crossing” by Hezekiah Strong and also his presentations as a circuit-riding preacher.

Norman had a kind and generous spirit, and touched countless lives through his woodworking, ministry and friendship. He was also a proud and loving brother, father, and grandfather. Over the past two months since his wife’s passing, he was beloved by the residents and staff of St Joseph’s Home in Ogdensburg, where he comforted the other residents daily with his smile, a touch of his hand, and a “God bless you.”

Memorial contributions can be made to Meals on Wheels at the St. Lawrence County Office of the Aging. Condolences and fond memories can also be shared online at www.foxandmurrayfuneralhome.com.