Norma Lucille (Carpenter) Stolz, 85

Norma Lucille (Carpenter) Stolz, 85, of Rockford, Ill., passed away Tuesday, March 26, 2019.
Norma was born April 2, 1933, in Omaha, Neb., daughter of Willard and Edna Pearl (Whitcomb) Carpenter. She was the oldest of six children and was raised in various locations in western Nebraska as her father was a ranchhand at this time. In 1940, her father bought a farm in Agate, Neb., and the family settled down. Norma was to be found most days helping her father with farm work. She rode horses, drove teams, drove tractor, and learned to drive in a 1929 Ford Model A. She was known for being a typical, ornery farm kid, up to mischief, but always working hard. She attended high school for 2 years at the St. Agnes Academy in Alliance and completed high school at Sioux County High School in Harrison, Neb. She went on to college at Scottsbluff Junior College to get her teaching certificate. In 1952, she met and married Ted Huggans, with whom she had five girls. Ted and Norma divorced in 1967. Norma then settled in Kimball, Neb., with her five girls. She married Donald Stolz in 1970 and along with six of their seven kids, at the time, moved to Woodstock, Ill., in 1972, where she had two more children for a total of eight girls and one boy. Norma lived in Woodstock, Ill., until 1995. While in Woodstock, she learned to play guitar with her daughters, Theresa and Mary, from her dearest friend, Eunice Mast. She was known for her hand-stitched quilts, crochet, upholstery, and baking. She worked at Dean Street Elementary in Woodstock in the library for 10 years before she “retired.” In 1995, she returned to Kimball, Neb., to take care of her mother, who passed in 2007. She made many dear friends and loved small town life. In 2014, after suffering from health issues, she returned to Illinois to live with her daughter, Mary, and family. She was loved and remembered by many.
She is survived by her brothers, Cyril Carpenter and W. Frank (Suzanne) Carpenter; a half-sister, Twila Davis; children, Nora Spikes, Susan (Tony) Smiley, Edna Delaney, Luana Louvier, Sydney (Stan) Mintz, Theresa (Ed) Deleon, Mary (Augustus) George, Christine Stolz, and Tony (Jennifer) Stolz; 24 grandchildren; 16 great-grandchildren; one great-great grandchild; and numerous nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Donald J. Stolz; sisters, Nadine, Nedra, and Nancy; granddaughter, Yolanda Faggan; and sister-in-law, Jean Carpenter.
Visitation will be from 6-8 p.m. on Monday, April 1, 2019, at Fitzgerald Funeral Home & Crematory, Mulford Chapel, 1860 S. Mulford Rd. Rockford, IL 61108. A funeral Mass will be held at 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 2, 2019, at St. Mary Oratory, 517 Elm St. Rockford, IL 61102. Visitation will also be from 1:30 p.m. until time of service at the church. Burial will conclude at St. Joseph Cemetery in Harvard, Ill., at a future date. Memorial contributions may be made in Norma’s name to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.
Arrangements entrusted to Fitzgerald Funeral Home & Crematory, Mulford Chapel. Online condolences and memories may be shared at www.fitzgeraldfh.com