Noreen O. Duran Scarton

Noreen was born on January 18, 1939 at the family home on 3rd Street to Roger and Noella (Beaumont)Duran. She was the baby of the family and had two brothers, Roger and Donald, and one sister, Leona. She attended Stronghurst elementary, Washington Middle School, and Albuquerque High School and transferred to Valley High School after she met Clarence. She left high school in 1957, gave birth to Les, and returned to school to earn her diploma. 

 Noreen and Clarence met in the summer of 1956, when Clarence and friends were out cruising in an old pick-up truck with the back seat removed (to fit more of his friends) when he spotted Noreen and two friends walking down 4th street. They turned around to get a good look at the girls and Clarence immediately declared that he liked the one in the shapely blue jeans and she was his. Noreen was the shapely one walking down the street with her life long friend Eloise, and Eloise's cousin, at first she resisted Clarence's advances and told them to move along. But Clarence would not give up and continued to pursue Noreen until she finally relented and agreed to have a soda with him at a local soda shop. The chance encounter blossomed in to a full blown relationship that lasted nearly 70 years. 

 Noreen and Clarence were married on December 13, 1956 at ST Therese parish in Albuquerque. In July of 1957 Noreen gave birth to her first child Leslie Clarence, her second child Steve Keller in December 1959 and her third child Angela Diane in September 1961 and finally the fourth child Suzanne Nicole in April 1971. They lived at first with Roger and Noella at the family home on 3rd street, before renting an apartment across street, then they purchased a home on San Lorenzo. They moved in to the house on Harmony Lane NW in the summer of 1965 and continued to live there until today. Noreen and Clarence were a generous and giving couple that opened their home to all friends and family, everyone felt welcome and were welcomed warmly at anytime. The home soon became the rock of the family and many, many Christmases, 4th of July, graduation parties, and even a few weddings were celebrated there. 

 Noreen worked at several jobs over the years to help support the family and her children never went without the things they needed in a typical middle class upbringing. Most notably she worked at Presbyterian Hospital in the x-ray department. She worked at McDonalds for several years and trained countless young people with the skills needed for their first job. Noreen was a bit of legend in the north valley and many teenagers raised here still remember her. She then finished her working career at Taft Middle School as a teacher's aide, where she had several of her grandkids in her classes. She again earned a reputation with a lot of the kids in the area and was known as a trusted adult that many youngsters could come to and receive good advice with complete confidentiality. 

 After retiring, Noreen and Clarence helped raise their six grandchildren and eight great grandchildren, providing financial and emotional support to all their kids, nieces, nephews, and even some friends of the family. Noreen and Clarence loved music, dancing and traveling across the United States. They visited friends and family at many locations. They spent many days in Portland, OR with youngest daughter Suzanne, visited Les when he was stationed in Chicago, stayed with friends in New England visiting place like Boston and New York City. They even traveled to Sydney, AU in 2009 to attend their oldest grandchild, Christine's wedding. In their later years they became members of the Solo Club, when they started accepting married couples. At the Solo Club, where they eventually became board members, they enjoyed dancing, singing, and celebrating with family and many new friends. A lot of Sunday evenings were spent singing karaoke, eating good food and socializing with all. Again they became mini celebrities and when they arrived they were treated like rock stars with everyone coming to their table to pay their respects. 

 Noreen had a great life, she was a warm and welcoming person who treated all people with respect and dignity. She became an advisor to many friends and family who reached out for her strength and sound advice. She believed in strongly in God and life after death, the earth is missing an angel now that she is gone. 

A visitation will be held on Friday, November 15, 2024 - FRENCH Funerals & Cremations University Chapel at 12:30pm. After the visitation a service will be held on Friday, November 15, 2024 - FRENCH Funerals & Cremations University Chapel at 1:30pm. Following the funeral service, the family would like to invite everyone to the reception at the American Legion Post 13.