Norman Dean Combs

1950 - 2010

Norman Dean Combs, 60, died Wednesday, Nov. 24, 2010, held in the arms of his loved ones at his home in Fort Worth, three months after being diagnosed with cancer. Service: A service honoring his life will be held at 1 p.m. Friday, Dec. 3, at Christ Chapel Bible Church, 3740 Birchman Ave., Fort Worth, with a reception following. Pastors Jim Boyd and Bill Kilgore and Don Coker of the Arlington Fire Department will officiate. Private burial: will be held earlier at Mount Olivet Cemetery. Memorials: Memorial gifts may be made to a cancer charity of choice or Life Gift Organ Donation, 1701 River Run, Suite 300, Fort Worth, Texas 76107. Please sign a donor card, and also consider following Marsha's example and become a living donor. Norman was born in Fort Worth to Lenora and James P. Combs on March 19, 1950, and lived his life in the surrounding area. He graduated from Chisholm Trail Academy in Keene in 1968 and was a 1973 graduate of North Texas State University in Denton. Lieutenant Combs retired from the Arlington Fire Department in 2004 after 26 years of service. When his polycystic diseased kidneys began failing him in late 2000, his friend and "angel," Marsha Strickland, gave him the gift of a healthy kidney in January 2001, which functioned perfectly to the end of his life. This blessed gift gave him nine years of enjoyment with his family and friends, especially his great-nieces and great-nephews and his stepgranddaughters, and Lynn's three grandchildren, who called him "Fire PaPa." His love for life will be remembered by his exceptional sense of humor and laughter, his unconditional sense of devotion and support for his family and friends, and his enthusiastic sense of adventure in sports and outdoor activities. He was a great man who will be greatly missed. Norman was predeceased by his mother and his sister, Patricia Combs Elliott. Survivors: All of Fort Worth, father, James P. Combs; brothers, Ron and his wife, Pat, and Richard and his wife, Tommie; sister, Sue Mackey and her husband, Steve; life partner, Lynn Ballard Sonsel, her children and grandchildren; stepson, U.S. Marine Corps Capt. Nathan Wright and his family of San Clemente, Calif.; several nieces and nephews and their families; aunts; an uncle; and many cousins.