Norma Draper

Norma Pearce Earle McDonald Draper Passed away at home in Kentfield on November 14, 2011 surrounded by members of her family and her husband of 63 years, Jerome C. Draper, Jr. They lived in Burlingame from the late 1940's until they moved to Marin in 1965. Norma was born October 28, 1926 in San Francisco, the daughter of Agnes Pennycook Earle and Norman Pearce Earle, Her father Norman, a graduate of Annapolis who was awarded the Navy Cross, died four months before her birth. Her mother Agnes later married Justin McDonald (also of Vallejo). Norma was a fifth generation Californian. She grew up in Vallejo, where her family, the Brownlies and the Pennycooks, had been active in founding the town, having settled there from Scotland in the 1850's. She graduated from Vallejo High School in 1944 and earned her B.A. in anthropology at the University of California at Berkeley where she was a member of the Alpha Phi sorority. Norma was an athlete and accomplished horsewoman. She skied competitively across the US but declined an invitation to try out for US Olympic Team in 1948. She was an avid tennis player throughout her life, and was on the courts until shortly before her death. Norma was an enthusiastic pilot. She and her sister Helen McGee flew together in air races from Mexico to Canada and across the country, including the Angel Derby, Palms-to-Pines, and the Powder Puff Derby. Norma was also a member of the Ninety-Nines, a women's aeronautic service group. She was a founding member of the Baja Bush Pilots (pilot #6). Norma became a fine woodworker, making beautiful tables and a set of Chippendale chairs for the dining room. She recaned chairs and taught that art to others. She was a competent draftswoman and a skilled designer. Norma was an accomplished pianist and talented cook, always using seasonal fruits and vegetables. She was also known for her version of the Blum's crunch cake. Norma loved the outdoors and lived sustainably long before it was fashionable. Norma had an amazing green thumb growing fruit trees and keeping a vegetable garden as well as ivy topiaries that she had created over the years. Norma lives on in the gratitude of the generations that she mentored. They credit her for teaching them to ski from an early age, post against the trot of a horse, use tools (and put them away), create and enjoy a garden (whether in pots or acreage), repair all manner of objects, pack into the high Sierra (without forgoing freshly baked brownies), play formidable tennis, clean a house efficiently, do a multitude of things with a milk carton, sing and yodel. Norma was always active in the community. She was president of the Coyote Point Junior Museum in Burlingame, den mother to a troupe of cub scouts, and active in Little League baseball. She also served on the Board of Trustees of The Branson School, where she received a citation from its Cum Laude Society that reads: "You soar in every way - in and out of an airplane." She was a founder and current president of an investment club (Money Bags), and an active member of The Marin Garden Club. She and her husband were active members of a prominent Bridge Group for over 50 years. Norma is survived by her husband Jerome C. Draper, Jr., ; her children Ann M. Draper, Jerome C. Draper III (Mea McNeil), and Jessie P. Draper, her grandchildren Stephanie E. Pinkham, Joshua C. M. Cassady, Benjamin E. M. Draper, Jerome C. Draper IV, Ramond L. King, Lindsey D. King and many loving nieces, nephews and cousins. She was preceded in death by her parents, her sister Helen, and her twin siblings Mary and James McDonald. A gathering in celebration of her life will be held at a later date.