Norma M. Morrison was a woman who lived through some truly interesting and extraordinary times, whose life was full of fascinating events and experiences - starting with her being born in Manila, the Philippines, during the very last day of the Battle of Manila during WWII - and yet, many of the stories she had to tell would come as a surprise to many that knew her because she rarely ever spoke of herself.

That she would reveal so little of herself in words, but showed the world who she was through her actions, that would come as no surprise. Norma was a tiny but fierce woman with a massive, hilarious personality, a voice and laugh that could fill a room, and a unique sense of style with a wardrobe packed enough to suit any celebrity - and she took it like her own personal calling to look after, fuss over, and bring joy to as many people in her vicinity as she could, even if through sheer force of will alone. Since her passing, recollections from friends, family, and friends who became family despite there being no blood bonds between them have been full of stories of her beauty: with her striking and sleek hairstyles over the years and her unusual eyes, brown with a ring of blue around the edges, plus the freckles on her cheeks that resembled a pair of fives on cinnamon-colored dice, she was truly a lovely and lovable individual both inside and out.

Her sharp sense of humor, overwhelming generosity, perseverance, resilience, determination, and work ethic are legendary among those that knew her, and there’s just no telling how many hundreds of people she nourished over the years with the culinary creations that seemingly sprung forth effortlessly from her graceful but diminutive hands with her always beautifully-manicured nails. Her bread, especially, will be missed, the coconut pecan filling never a secret, but the exact proportions of the bread ingredients, sifted and kneaded with such skill and a delicate feel for the perfect texture, fragrance and rise of the dough passed beyond the veil with her, leaving only the memory of the taste on the tongues of those who will miss her the most. Countless parties were fueled by the dishes that flowed from her kitchen, and the efforts of her hard work not only helped to raise her own children, but with some of those funds, she was able to send many of her nieces and nephews in the Philippines on to college, helping numerous family members to build a strong foundation for their futures for themselves and their own eventual families.

And it wasn’t only her nieces and nephews that benefitted from her incredible generosity and work ethic: though Norma worked at many different jobs at her career, both in factories and storefronts, known as a lady who could both operate the factory line work that would typically take two to three people to complete, but also later on be treated as “the queen of the sub sandwich” by her coworkers and happy customers alike, all of whom she called “Darling,” just as she called every person she ever spoke to. That was part of the secret to her charm; she could always make someone feel special, in any of hundreds of ways. 

Norma was predeceased by her parents, Pilar and Teotimo Hantid, her husband, Wilfred B. Morrison, Jr., her stepson Scott Morrison, and several of her sixteen siblings. She is survived by her partner of several years, John Simpson, her son, his wife, and children, John and Mika (Ikari) Morrison, Kyle, Ryu, and Timothy Morrsion, and her daughter, Kim Lee (Morrison) Hackett, her husband Thomas Hackett, and their child Phoenix Hackett, her best friend of 34 years Maria Soto and her husband Manuel, and their children Linda, Antonio, and Angelo, as well as countless friends and other family members, amongst whom she will be dearly missed.

A celebration of life for friends and family will be held for Norma at her home on Sept 19th, 2026.