Norma Ballard

Funeral service for Norma Jean Ballard will be held 2:00 p.m. Wednesday, January 13, 2016 at the Kiowa United Methodist Church. Burial will follow in Rose Hill Cemetery in Hazelton.

Norma Jean Gates Ballard left this world on January 7, 2016, just 6 days after her 86th birthday.
Norma Gates ushered in both a new year and a new decade when she entered into the world on January 1, 1930. Born in the family farmhouse near Hazelton, Kansas, she was the 4th child of Eugene Griffith and Jamima Garlow Gates.

She spent her early years growing up on the farm. A few of her duties were to help milk the cows and feed the livestock. However being raised on the farm did have its perks. Norma loved horses. She became an expert horsewoman who enjoyed riding often. It also provided the perfect time to enjoy reading and interacting with her very large family.

Norma attended rural country schools prior to going to Hazelton Schools where she graduated in 1947.

Hazelton also was the place she met William "Bill" Ballard. They would marry at his parents home on November 9, 1947. Their early years were spent in rural farm homes in the Hazelton area as her husband attempted to make a living in farming. Over the next few years, Norma's family would grow in size, with the birth of her 3 children, Connie, Keith, and Joe. When the children became school age, Norma and her family moved to Kiowa. Norma worked primarily as a homemaker. She did however supplement her income by working a variety of jobs. Some of them were baking and selling cinnamon rolls and donuts, babysitting other children, and working at the Kiowa Hospital as a Nurse's Aid.

Norma stated repeatedly that her happiest times were spent in Kiowa. She loved raising her children there. She enjoyed school and sports activities as well as attending the Kiowa Methodist Church and the many church activities. However after the death of her youngest son Joe, Norma and Bill left her beloved town of Kiowa and moved to California. They would spend the next 10 years there. Wanting to rejoin family, Norma and Bill moved to Topeka, Kansas to be near their daughter Connie and her children Shannon and Stacey. This also allowed her to be close to her son Keith and his family in Oklahoma.

The next few years found Norma and Bill owning and operating a housecleaning business. This continued for a few years following the death of Bill. As the years progressed, Norma was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and eventually moved to Brookdale Assisted Living Center in Claremore.

Norma will be remembered for many different aspects of her life. Her friends and family all share great memories. However they all shared the love for her cooking. She was well known for her famous chicken fried steak, chicken and noodles, and great breakfasts.

She is preceded in death by her parents Eugene and Jamima Gates; husband Bill Ballard; son William Joseph "Joe" Ballard and daughter Connie Ballard Schwartz, and siblings, Merle Gates, Eileen Greikspoor, Dean Gates and infant brother, Roger Gates.

Survivors include her son, Keith Ballard and wife Christie of Claremore; grandchildren, Matthew Ballard and wife Traci, Michelle Sagely and husband Michael all of Claremore, Michael Ballard and wife Fanny of Orebro, Sweden, Stacey Miller and husband Adrian, and Shannon Gregg and husband Kevin all of Topeka; 13 great-grandchildren, and siblings Bob Gates and wife Dorothy of Buffalo, Shirley Hamm and husband Duane of Hillsboro, KS, Vinita Waggoner and husband Dee of Valley Center, KS and Harold Gates and wife Iva of Amorita.

Memorials may be made to the Alzheimer's Association, 2448 E. 81st Street, Suite 3000, Tulsa, OK 74137, www.alz.org , The Foundation for Tulsa Public Schools, 3027 South New Haven, No. 600, Tulsa, OK 74114-6131, www.foundationfortulsaschools.org , The Claremore Public School Foundation, P.O. Box 575, Claremore, OK 74018, www.claremorepublicschoolsfoundation.org or The Helping Hands Humane Society, 5720 SW 21st Street, Topeka, KS 66604, www.hhhstopeka.org .