Norma Jean Kinney

Norma Jean Kinney
August 28, 1932 – April 9, 2025
Norma Jean Kinney (née Katcher) passed away peacefully in the early morning hours of April 9, 2025. Beloved by her family and friends and the caring staff of Cornerstone Memory Care at The Chesapeake, Norma was known as the Bingo Champion. She loved zazvorniky (Slovak cookies), crafts and music, happily singing along with her favorite songs by Elvis and other singers of the ’40s and ’50s. Long car rides were often filled with songs as she taught her young children classics such as “She’ll Be Coming ’Round the Mountain” and “The Daring Young Man on the Flying Trapeze.” She loved camping and square dancing, but her family was her heart and soul.

Norma had a keen sense of humor and loved to have fun. She played the ukulele in college and enjoyed dancing. As a teen, she once built a snowman facing the window to cheer up her younger sister who was sick and could not go out to play. Then she went in the house and returned to pose with Frosty in her bathing suit!

Norma was born in Binghamton, NY, in the middle of the Great Depression, but she lived during an extraordinary time. She witnessed the rise of major inventions from television to computers, and watched the first man to set foot on the moon. She saw telephones evolve from devices that tethered her to a wall to smartphones that allowed her to meet one of her great-granddaughters face-to-face, even though she lives across the country.
She spent her childhood in Dolgeville, NY and graduated from Columbia Presbyterian School of Nursing, garnering skills that came in handy with four active sons.

On September 10, 1955, she married the love of her life, Robert Michael Kinney, whom she met as a teen at a community dance after seeing him in a parade with the band from a nearby school. They lived life to the fullest in their 21 short years together, raising seven children, attending church faithfully, square dancing, and camping, which was the most affordable way to vacation with a large family. They relished the zoos that they toured and the leisurely summers spent swimming and fishing, playing Scrabble, and making fruit pies in the campfire.

After Bob died at the young age of 46, Norma continued to raise her children on her own, making sure they each received a college education and were prepared for a sustainable career. When her brother had to move across the country, she adopted his two miniature dachshunds, Tyke and Elsa Mae, who became her cherished companions.

Norma was predeceased by her beloved husband, Bob, her parents, Andrew and Ann Katcher, her brother, David Katcher, and her sister, Marcia Magill. She is survived by her seven children and their spouses; Pam (Craig) Gunter, Bob (Jill) Kinney, Jill (Dave) McCloskey, Steve (Teri) Kinney, Lisa (Darius) Miller, David (Linda) Kinney, and Jerry (Beth) Kinney. She was a loving Grammie to 20 grandchildren, including a set of triplets and two sets of twins, and Great-Grammie to 10 great-grandchildren with one more on the way. Norma is also survived by her brother-in-law, Art Magill, and many nieces and nephews.
For her 80th birthday, she asked only for a book in which her children would write down their childhood memories. It has become her family’s legacy, offering a connection between her and her children as well as her caregivers when her memory was not at its best. The stories were read over and over and generated much joy and laughter and tenderness.
A Funeral Mass will be held on Tuesday April 22, 2025 at 11:00 am at St. Joan of Arc Catholic Church, 315 Harris Grove Lane, Yorktown, VA 23692 with visitation in the vestibule of the church from 10:00 to 11:00 am.
In lieu of flowers, the family invites contributions to:
Virginia Baptist Homes Foundation, to support Cornerstone Memory Support at The Chesapeake.
Checks made payable to ‘VBH Foundation’ can be sent to:
VBH Foundation, 3961 Stillman Parkway, Glen Allen VA 23060.
Gifts can also be made online at: Giving – LifeSpire of Virginia