Norman Pliner

Norman S. Pliner

September 11, 1917 - September 7, 2015

Kensington, MD

Norman S. Pliner, of Kensington, MD, died peacefully in his sleep on Monday, September 7, 2015. Prior to moving to Maryland in 2013, Norm lived for more than 40 years in Raleigh.

Norm was born in Brooklyn, NY in 1917 to David and Kate Pliner. He was the oldest of three children, including sister Leonora and brother Melvin. He attended Brooklyn Tech, then Purdue University to study engineering. After college ROTC, Norm attended officer training school at Yale University. During World War II, Norm was stationed in Nome, Alaska as part of the Army Air Forces. He oversaw the refueling/servicing of planes flying from the U.S. to the Soviet Union for the Lend-Lease program.

In 1941, he met Rosalyn Saltz in Brooklyn and they were soon married. Roz accompanied Norm to his early Army postings in Louisiana and Washington. It was in Fort Lewis, Washington that their first daughter, Patricia (Toronto, Canada), was born in 1943.

Following the war, Norm, Roz and Patty moved to Cumberland, MD where Norm began his career as a mechanical engineer. Daughter Judy (Chapel Hill) was born in Cumberland in 1948. Over the next 20 years, the family lived in Charlotte and Pearisburg, VA, as Norm pursued his engineering career. In 1963, another daughter, Janice (Kensington, MD), was born. The family moved to Raleigh, NC in 1966.

Norm was a leader in his professional and religious communities. He served as President of Temple Beth Or in Raleigh, and was President of the Blumenthal Jewish Home in Clemmons, NC. He helped launch the Hillel Jewish Preschool in Raleigh. He was dedicated to his parents, making sure all their needs were met during their final years.

Following the death of Roz in 1992, Norm established the Rosalyn and Norman S. Pliner Scholarship Fund to help Jewish women seeking to attend college and graduate school. Norm also met Sherry Bernstein. Both were widowed, and they built a shared life that lasted until Sherry's death in 2011.

Norm was fortunate to have four wonderful grandchildren, Kate Cappell, Andrew Cappell, Rachel Steger and Sarah Steger and two sons-in-law, Robert Olmsted and Jeff Steger.

Norm's can-do attitude, his strong Jewish identity, and his devotion to serving his community are to be admired and remembered.

A memorial service will be held at Temple Beth Or in Raleigh, NC on Sunday, October 11 at 3:00 pm. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Rosalyn and Norman S. Pliner Scholarship Fund, Attention: Betsy Gamburg, Greensboro Jewish Federation, 5509 W. Friendly Ave., Greensboro, NC 27410, (336-852-4829).