Norma Joan (Osborn) Gelinas

Norma J (Osborn) Casner Gelinas passed away peacefully Friday, November 23, 2018 at her home in Leominster Massachusetts, surrounded by her loving family. She was 85. She was born in Bombay, India, the daughter of Charles A. Osborn and Gladys (Poitras) Osborn. She had one sister, Nancy Ann Osborn Wolff. Her father was employed by the Standard Vacuum Oil Company In India and moved his family there during his tenure at the company. While in India, Norma attended the Hebron School in Ootacamund, Tamil Nadu, India. At the start of World War II, Norma and her sister Nancy returned permanently to the United States to attend school while their parents stayed in India. Norma attended the Sea Pines School in Brewster, Massachusetts where she enjoyed horseback riding and sailing in addition to her studies. The family later settled in Sharon, Massachusetts. After graduating from Sharon High School, she went on to study at Columbia University in New York, graduating with a degree from the School of General Studies. She married Nelson Thomas Casner in 1954, settled in Melrose, Massachusetts and raised a family of four children. The family later moved to Lincoln where Norma started her own business teaching piano lessons. She also studied Classical Piano at the New England Conservatory of Music under the tutelage of acclaimed pianist Victor Rosenbaum, graduating in 1975 with a Bachelor of Music degree. She later worked in the medical field at Beth Israel Hospital and the Joslin Diabetes Center in the research department under world renowned diabetes researcher, the late George Eisenbarth. She ran her own word processing business in Cambridge, Massachusetts for several years before relocating to the Acton area. She also worked at Amatech Corporation in Acton, Massachusetts as office manager where she met her husband Ed Imhoff. After retiring in 1998, she moved to Leominster, Massachusetts where she enjoyed painting, reading, going for walks in the conservation areas of Acton, Carlisle and Lincoln, landscape photography, listening to classical music and taking care of her two chocolate Labrador retrievers. She had a wonderful sense of humor, a quick and quirky wit, was a great listener and was always looking out for others; family members, friends and strangers alike. She could strike up a conversation with anyone, anywhere, about almost anything. She made friends easily and had a memorable impact on all those whose lives she touched. She had a profound sense of fairness and instilled in her children the desire to help others. She always put oth¬ers first ahead of herself even at her own expense. She had great strength of character and knew how to get things done. She was able to help many of her friends and family members through some very difficult times and never asked anything in return. She is predeceased by her first husband Nelson Thomas Casner, February 16, 1976, her daughter Rae Catherine Casner, October 15, 1978 and her sister, Nancy Ann Osborn Wolff, February 21, 2017 She is survived by her husband of 25 years, Ed Imhoff, her son Michael, Daughter in law Iris, daughters Tracy and Christine, nieces Alice (Joe Collins), Amy (Bill Cay), Judith, and nephew David (Michelle King) and grandchildren Mayrelis and Sonia, a great grandson Isaac, and grand nephews Ben, Henry, Joshua and Marc and grand nieces; Anna, Larisa, and Emily. Family and friends will gather to remember and celebrate Norma's life on Sunday, December 16, 2018 at 11:00 am in the Concord Funeral Home. Interment will be private. " We are grateful for her life and her legacy and are made better by her presence in our lives. We will miss her dearly." Goodbye my love You will be with me always