FRANCIS J. NORMAN

Major General (Retd), CStJ, CD After a short hospitalization, Frank passed peacefully at Kingston General Hospital on the morning of Thursday, August 14, 2025. The younger son of the Hon. Harry Norman and Molle Norman, he was born on September 26, 1935, at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Montreal. He attended Selwyn House School in Montreal, and Trinity College School at Port Hope, Ontario. Frank Norman joined the Regular Force as an Officer Cadet at Royal Roads in Victoria in 1952. He graduated from RMC in 1956 and studied at McGill for one year thereafter. He served as an Infantry officer in The Royal Canadian Regiment for 39 years until to his retirement in 1990. His last appointment was Commandant of the National Defence College of Canada; prior appointments included command of First Battalion, The RCR, and Commandant and Vice-Chancellor of the Royal Military College of Canada. Although he never identified his favourite appointment, his affiliation with RMC was probably one of the defining experiences of his life. On his retirement, he continued to work with RMC in a variety of informal advisory capacities and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the College in 1995. He continued to serve in uniform as the Honorary Lieutenant-Colonel and then Honorary Colonel of the Canadian Grenadier Guards of Montreal, stepping down from the latter appointment in 2005. He was Chairman of the Board of Kingston General Hospital from 1995–1998 and was Chairman of the Board of the Ontario Hospital Association in 2000–2001; he remained a Life Member of that Association. He served in a governance role with the local Loyalist Branch of St. John's Ambulance for a number of years and was an honorary member of the Chapter of the Priory of St. John in Canada. In 2012, he became the Secretary-Treasurer of the Heritage and Museum Committee of the Royal Military College, stepping down from that appointment in 2024. He married Anne Marie Lemon, daughter of Frank and Marion Lemon, of London, Ontario, on June 10, 1961, his best friend and sharer of all sorts of fun and experiences over the years following. They had two sons - Mark and Peter. They were grandparents to Holly (Nick Poulin), daughter of Mark, and Beverly Norman and to Jacob and Natasha, children of Peter and Jennifer Baird-Norman. As "Grandad," he admired and encouraged all of their individual talents. He also leaves behind Anne's brother, Ross Lemon; and his wife, Tova; of London, Ontario. Frank was predeceased by his brother, Michael; and sister, Marie, both of Vancouver. The family would like to thank the staff at the Kingston General Hospital for their kind and compassionate care. Details of the funeral service and celebration of life will be published separately as soon as they are finalized. In lieu of flowers, please make donations to: The RMC Alumni Association - Museum Capital Fund: https://www.rmcalumni.ca/en/donate-today/heritage/museum-capital-fund/ Paws Fur Thought (Service Dogs): https://pawsfurthought.ca/