Norbert Charles Widman

Norbert Charles (Norb) Widman, 83, of Yucca Valley, CA died on January 2, 2025. He is survived by his wife Sandra (Brunner) Widman; sons Robert (Lynnette) Widman of Mill Valley, CA; Michael (Sandra) Widman of Issaquah, WA; daughter Julie Widman of Chatsworth, CA; grandchildren Lukas and Ariel Antes, and Kaitlyn Widman; sister Kathleen Faist, Sylvania, Ohio; and many nieces and nephews.

Norb was born on February 1, 1941, and lived with his family on a small farm near Fremont, OH. He was preceded in death by his parents Robert and Flavia (Meyer) Widman and four sisters: Marjorie Rodenhauser, Geraldine Daiber, Mary Ellen Menden, and Roberta Esker.

He was a 1959 graduate of Fremont St. Joseph High School, a 1963 graduate of the University of Detroit, followed by two years of graduate studies at Bowling Green State University. He married Sandra Brunner in 1965 at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Fremont.

He began his career working for a school/sheltered workshop that assisted handicapped children and adults. Several years later he joined National Family Opinion, a marketing research firm based in Toledo, Ohio, and later relocated to San Francisco to establish a western office for the company. Later he worked for several other research/advertising firms.

In the mid-1980s they moved to Yucca Valley where he acquired his teaching certificate and taught for several years in the local school district. In 1995 he and Sandra embarked on a career in overseas teaching. Over the next 12 years they taught in 6 different schools located in Europe, Asia, and Africa. Upon their retirement in 2007, they moved to Stockton, CA to be closer to their children and grandchildren. They returned to Yucca Valley in 2017.

In retirement, Norbert served as a volunteer in several hospitals, hospices, and Catholic churches in Stockton and in Yucca Valley. He enjoyed the tranquility of rural living in the California desert, listening to music, reading, and visiting friends and relatives. He also worked on his travel journals and dabbled in poetry.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held for Norbert on Saturday, July 19, 2025, 10:00 am at St. Joseph Catholic Church, 709 Croghan St, Fremont, OH 43420.

Burial will take place following the service at St. Joseph Cemetery.

Memorials can be made in Norbert’s honor to Bishop Hoffman Catholic Schools or to the Alzheimer’s Association.