The service will be streamed online via Facebook Live. Norma was a member of the Gentryville United Methodist Church. (86 years old). Despite Henry and Ida Maes attempts to reason with their neighbors, the harassment and threats continued. She also admitted to the reporter that her father didnt have much confidence in her testifying in court; hed even bet a man that shed mess up on the witness stand. Donations from readers like you are essential to sustaining this work. Now it has been thrust back into the public consciousness. All photos appear on this tab and here you can update the sort order of photos on memorials you manage. On the first floor is a historical museum with a modest kiosk dedicated to the Groveland Four. Lee was born February 16, 1956. There were rumors around town that Willie would drink and sometimes become violent toward his wife. She did this on a Lutheran mission post in New Guinea, and as a nurse in several cities in Kansas, Missouri, and New Jersey. If you found a mistake or you want to remove or add obituary, please send us e-mail to info@obituary.memorial. On July 17, Norma and Willie decided to try and patch things up. Previously sponsored memorials or famous memorials will not have this option. Cherwa also contributes general interest stories from Florida. Google shows our ads across third party sites across the internet to help communicate our message and reach the right people who have shown interest in our information in the past. All of that changed on a summer night in 1949, when one of those neighborsa 17-year-old white girltold Lake County deputies and Sheriff McCall that shed been raped by four black men. She worked at Barnes Hospital in St. Louis upon graduation where she met her husband, Reverend Stanley Delton Padgett, who was attending Concordia Seminary in St. Louis. Samuel Shepherd in his coffin in November 1951. In some ways, the town is still coming to terms with its past. Norma was the family matriarch, adored by all and feared when we foolishly stepped out of line. On a nearby television monitor, she could see Rep. Bobby DuBose addressing the families. In 1998, Jamess health was failing. The impact she had on others in this half-decade of service in her chosen profession is immeasurable. She loved to make people smile. Copyright 2023 Echovita Inc. All rights reserved. Alene gave them privacy, and the two former Groveland neighbors sat on the interior porch for about five minutes," she recounted to her daughter. The past he simply buried. Norma Hunter Lee, 86, passed away peacefully, on Monday, January 31, 2022, surrounded by her family. Family and friends can send flowers and condolences in memory of the loved one. They were handcuffed together when, according to McCall, he stopped the car to check a tire and they tried to escape, so he shot them. My father did not carry prejudice, Erma said. Norma Padgett and her husband Willie after questioning by the states attorney, in a 1949 newspaper clipping. Condolences may be sent to the family at: Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. Curators added a new feature to the exhibit Monday: A note that reads: EXONERATED! This page is a cache taken from the public sources. Beloved wife to the love of her. Failed to remove flower. You could put markers where some of the incidents took place. Driven from Groveland, the Shepherd family had lost their house and farm in what Florida legislators described as the states dark times of racism. Use Escape keyboard button or the Close button to close the carousel. Norma married Fred Zampedri on April 2, 1955, in Elko, Nevada. Those left to cherish her memory include her children, Lori Lee Ferrell and her husband Randy of Cornelius, NC, Robert Jeff Lee and his wife Phyllis of Arlington, VA, Lesley Lee Padgett of Cornelius, NC, and Kirk Hunter Lee and his wife Candace of Flower Mound, TX; her grandchildren, Aaron and Chad Ferrell, Isabella and Alexis Lee, Lauren Padgett, and Hunter and Conner Lee; and her great grandchildren, Charlotte Lee and Peyton Ferrell. Were Christians, Erma added, noting that her father made sure the family never missed service at Clermonts New Jacobs Missionary Baptist Church. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by two siblings, William Boyd Padgett and Norma Lee Padgett. Oops, we were unable to send the email. Are you sure that you want to delete this memorial? Until then, Gladson said he was prepared to draft a remorseful and sympathetic letter to the families closing the case. Learn about how to make the most of a memorial. 2022, Obituary.Memorial. Currently, his major coverage area is horse racing, where he can be found at big races at Santa Anita, the Triple Crown series and Breeders Cup. Which memorial do you think is a duplicate of Norma Meakin (79291851)? She later claimed she had also been raped. The men ranged in age from 16 to 26 in 1949 when they were accused of raping Norma Lee Padgett. The sheriff picked up the two men at the state prison to drive them back to Lake County for the retrial. The new evidence was unearthed in a battered brown box, marked exhibits 6-9-52 Walter Lee Irvin - vs - State.. In 1951, after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned his sons guilty verdict, calling the trial and its surrounding atmosphere one of the worst menaces to American justice, Sheriff Willis McCall decided to personally transport the defendants from Raiford prison back to Lake County for the retrial. Despite what the doctors had said, she knew there was still strength in James Shepherds heart. She lives in Georgia and had not spoken publicly about what happened since Irvin's second trial . Thurgood Marshall and the NAACPs Legal Defense Fund paid for his funeral. An email has been sent to the person who requested the photo informing them that you have fulfilled their request, There is an open photo request for this memorial. Norma had a capacity to love that defies description. GREAT NEWS! Your account has been locked for 30 minutes due to too many failed sign in attempts. To this day, she has not spoken to any journalists, nor made any public statements. He rejoined The Times in 2009 and left his post as deputy sports editor late in 2017. To add a flower, click the Leave a Flower button. With tears that turned to sobs, the broken-hearted niece of Samuel Shepherd was enveloped by family hugs. He was paroled in 1962, moved to Nashville and died in 2012. When Vivian Shepherd, an administrative secretary at East Ridge High School, left her Lake County, Fla., home on the morning of April 18, she knew shed be cutting it close. Norma will always be remembered for her stylish outfits with matching accessories and color coordinated closets. Turning down a dark clay road, McCall stopped his car, pulled his gun, and executed Samuel Shepherd. The Irvins and the Greenlees soon emerged from the elevators and spotted Vivian in the lobby. Copyright 2010 - 23 Toon Funeral Homes and Cremation Services. Gov. Europe and others push for a standard lunar time zone, Dr. Simi is a TikTok star. cemeteries found in Davenport, Polk County, Florida, USA will be saved to your photo volunteer list. He would not lie. Norma dropped the Padgett name, the couple divorced in 1958, and she remarried to another Lake County man a few years later. Padgett, now 89, declined her right to appear at the proceeding and present evidence or testimony, said State Attorney William Gladson, who provided the judge with "newly discovered evidence" to. Throughout that summer, old friends arrived at the Shepherd home to pay respects to the trusty mechanic and longtime Lake County family man. LeRoy Collins: if Walter Irvin pleaded guilty to rape, the state would agree to spare his life. Learn more about merges. Funeral arrangement under the care ofToon Funeral Homes. John Griffin, who was 5 at the time, said his father took the family to nearby Montverde when the Klan started to arrive. She lives in Georgia and had not spoken publicly about what happened since Irvins second trial until Friday. He started at The Times in 1980 and left in 1995 to be sports editor of the Chicago Tribune and Tribune Co. sports coordinator in 2002. Lee James Padgett, age 66, of Athens, Georgia, formerly of West Columbia, SC, passed away on Sunday, May 8, 2022. We will know she is watching over us whenever we see her cherished cardinals in the yard. The email does not appear to be a valid email address. Notre Dame Catholic Church 64 Norfolk Ave, Clarendon Hills, IL 60514. She so appreciated the prayers and support of her parish community through and at the end of her life. I dont think there is any way that you can look at this case and see justice was carried out, DeSantis said at the hearing. Failed to report flower. He was defeated in the next election. Donations from readers like you are essential to sustaining this work. 4920 Main Street Downers Grove, IL NORMA PADGETT OBITUARY Norma Rose Padgett (nee Thornton) age 99 3/4, went home to her Heavenly Father on July 1, 2022. Born to Alpha and Loretta Padgett on June 2, 1931, in Miami, Oklahoma, Norma grew up with a sister, Jean, and two brothers, Richard and Don. OBITUARY Lee James Padgett February 16, . For Willie Padgett proved Normas daddy right about one thing. She is survived by : her mother Annie Underwood Hunter; her husband Robert; her children, Lori Lee Ferrell (Randy) of Cornelius, NC, Robert Jeff Lee (Phyllis) of Arlington, VA, Lesley Lee Padgett of Cornelius, NC and Kirk Hunter Lee (Candace) of Flower Mound, TX; her grandchildren, Aaron, Chad Ferrell, Isabella, Alexis Lee, Lauren Padgett and Conner Lee; and her great grandchildren, Charlotte Lee and Peyton Ferrell. (NEA. Ron DeSantis, elected officials and community leaders participated in the unveiling ceremony, honoring the four men who were falsely accused of a rape in 1949. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to The Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd at the above address. I think that there are so many new people that unless they were history buffs, they probably didnt even know this happened., At the same time, she said, a lot of old-timers in Lake County want to say that this is history, its over, its done, we dont need to talk about it.. Many who grew up in this small central Florida town, originally built on the industries of citrus, lumber and turpentine, didnt know for decades. Close this window, and upload the photo(s) again. Howard King, whose family settled in the area in the late 1800s and brought black workers from Baltimore, remembered the chaos as a bunch of rednecks who went crazy., They had the power, they had the support of the sheriff, he said. Norma was born on March 25, 1936, the 5th of nine children of Walter and Mathilda Hauschild, in Dorchester, Illinois. Historians and authors have theorized that Padgett and her husband, whom she divorced in 1958 and died some years later, came up with the story of the rape to explain away a volatile relationship. Failed to delete memorial. Rogersville, PA, 15359. The sponsor of a memorial may add an additional. Telephone: 724-499-5181. There is a new angel in heaven and her name is Norma. She always said her happiest moments in life were when she was cuddling babies, and God gave her many to love. Translation on Find a Grave is an ongoing project. Walter Irvin, handcuffed to his best friend, was shot three times, but he survived to tell the FBI a story of cold blooded murdera version of events that the FBI later corroborated in its investigation, contradicting McCalls claim that he was attacked during an inexplicable escape attempt. In the summer of that year, Alene Shepherd called her daughter, Vivian, to tell her the story of the white woman who showed up at the Shepherd home in Clermont. Norma Padgett and her husband Willie after questioning by the state's attorney in Tavares, Florida, in a newspaper clipping that appeared in the Statesville Daily Record, July 22, 1949. Family members linked to this person will appear here. Then in 2013, the Pulitzer Prize for nonfiction went to the author Gilbert King for his account of the saga, Devil in the Grove: Thurgood Marshall, the Groveland Boys, and the Dawn of a New America.. There was an error deleting this problem. There is 1 volunteer for this cemetery. or don't show this againI am good at figuring things out. Willie Padgett said he was beaten by the side of the road. What the guards didnt tell Vivian was that shed been trying to gain entry on the wrong floor; that the families of the Groveland Boys were one floor up, seated in the balcony, which was open to the public. It was not the first apology that Vivian Shepherd had missed. Campanella & Stewart Funeral Home - Wamego Obituary Heaven claimed one of its angels on earth with the passing of Norma Faye (Hauschild) Padgett on October 12, 2020, when she succumbed to. Norma dropped the Padgett name, the couple divorced in 1958, and she remarried to another Lake County man a few years later. Floridas House of Representatives was scheduled to officially apologize for the gross injustices in the case of the Groveland Boys, and one of those boys was Samuel Shepherdthe uncle shed never metgunned down by Sheriff Willis McCall on the side of a dark Lake County road in 1951, 10 years before Vivian was born. Norma wandered into Okahumpka, 15 miles north of Groveland, the next morning and told a man she had been abducted. memorial page for Norma Lee Padgett Meakin (8 Sep 1926-18 Sep 1988), Find a Grave Memorial ID 79291851, citing Evergreen Cemetery, Davenport . You need a Find a Grave account to continue. Vivian Shepherd took a deep breath, filled out the form, and handed it to a man she never saw again. This time, however, the nation was watching. This website aggregate United States obituaries from different resources. Within hours, Samuel Shepherd and Walter Irvin, 22-year-old childhood friends and army buddies from Groveland, were arrested, taken into the basement beneath the Lake County jail, and severely beaten by deputies. A unique and lasting tribute for a loved one. Honor a loved one by planting trees in their memory. Rogersville, PA, 15359. N N Guzman November 17, 2018 Offering my sincere condolences for the family. She strained to hear through the doors as the House voted unanimously, 117-0, to apologize to the families of the Groveland Boys. You have chosen this person to be their own family member. We will review the memorials and decide if they should be merged. Go to funeral home website to view original page. Fred joined God on February 1, 2013. Please contact Find a Grave at [emailprotected] if you need help resetting your password. There are countless people we need to remember who suffered similar fates who have been lost to history, Marshall said Monday. She grew up in Gillespie, Illinois and after high school graduation pursued her passion for helping others by earning her Bachelors of Nursing degree from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. In 1972, he was serving his seventh term as sheriff when he was indicted for the murder of a mentally disabled black prisoner while in custody. Share this memorial using social media sites or email. Disclaimer: All information provided on this website is provided in good faith, however we make no representation or warranty of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability, availability or completeness of any information on the Site. There are no volunteers for this cemetery. Despite the publicity, the Groveland Historical Society, a cramped building of clippings, mementos and sports trophies, has no mention of the Groveland Four in any of its displays. Receive obituaries from the city or cities of your choice. Vivian Shepherd was living in Gainesville in 1998 when she received a Monday night telephone call from her mother. Thank you for fulfilling this photo request. Lori Lee Ferrell (Randy) of Cornelius, NC, Robert Jeff Lee (Phyllis) of Arlington, VA, Lesley Lee Padgett of Cornelius, NC and Kirk Hunter Lee (Candace) of Flower Mound, TX; her . Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate, or jump to a slide with the slide dots. NORMA ROSE PADGETT, please click here to visit our Sympathy Store. Norma was sternly warned to never again discuss the case. The two were married over 50 years. Rick Scott and his cabinet to perform an expedited clemency review of the cases and grant full pardons. Receive obituaries from the city or cities of your choice. She was born in Mecklenburg County to the late Vance and Annie Underwood Hunter. She retired from the Lawton Indian Hospital in 2005, ending her 50-year career in nursing as the Supervisor of Nurses. This browser does not support getting your location. There should be some way to reflect what happened, Hein said. Norma requested she be cremated and laid to rest in Ogden City Cemetery next to her beloved Fred and that there be no public services. If they call them rapists, then our name becomes that of a rapist. Shepherd was tortured into making a confession and tried with Irvin. We deeply sympathize and respect the loss of your loved ones, relatives, friends and acquaintances. PADGETT, Norma J. When asked for an explanation early this month, Scotts press secretary said they were reviewing our options, and then never got back to the Los Angeles Times before Scott left state office Tuesday. All have preceded her in joining God. Private graveside services honoring the life of Norma Beth Martin Padgett were held at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, January 5, 2021 at Mt. Norma was nurtured by Gods Word and Sacrament all the days of her life and is now with the Lord Jesus forever; John 14:1-3. The fourth suspect, Charles Greenlee, 16, was beaten until he confessed and was sentenced to life in prison even though he had been in custody for a gun violation at the time of the alleged attack. Please reset your password. Search Engine specialized in the United States Obituaries. Born to Alpha and Loretta Padgett on June 2, 1931, in Miami, Oklahoma, Norma grew up with a sister, Jean, and two brothers, Richard and Don. Gladson had the pants analyzed at the FDLE lab in Orlando which reported, Using microscopy, no semen was identified . He was born August 23, 1954 in Bedford, IN, the son of Daniel Lewis and Norma Jean (Tolbert) Padgett. Prepare a personalized obituary for someone you loved.. July 26, 1935 - Her hugs could make a rainy day seem like a warm summer sunrise. There was a problem getting your location. But Normas biggest contribution to the world was as a mother and grandmother. Norma Lee Padgett Meakin. All have preceded her in joining God. 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