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Norma Rae Stiles Nabut, 86, passed away June 4, 2022 at ECU Health Medical Center after a brief illness. She was born May 22, 1936 in Medford, Massachusetts, to Norman Ryder Stiles, Captain, U.S. Coast Guard and WWII veteran, and Mary Fredericka Suckow Stiles. Never one to inconvenience, she slipped away while we weren’t looking, on a cloud of a perfectly beautiful day. Left to cherish her memory is Norma’s first spouse, Edward T. Howell, Jr., currently of Indian Rocks Beach, FL, and their children: Susan Howell, of Greenville, NC, and Lauren and Stephen Howell of Seattle, WA and their spouses, Jacob Fleisher and Marcy Nelson, respectively; her children by second marriage to Martin William Nabut of Bronx, NY: Jenifer Nabut Mahan of Rochester, NY, and spouse, Tim Mahan; Peter Nabut of Southampton, MA and spouse Emily Dunn; and Jonathan Nabut of Great Meadows, NJ. Also beloved are grandchildren Ava Fleisher, Pascalle Aldib, Jordana Graham; Joliene and Toby Mahan, and Bibi and Noa Nabut; great-grandchildren Tres McGuire and Trevor Graham; and Norma’s surviving sibling, Edmund Suckow Stiles, of Mill Valley, CA, and his son Wyeth and family. Also remembering Norma are sister-in-law Judy L. Stiles of Raleigh, wife of Norma’s older brother, Stephen Ryder Stiles, who was gone too soon; and their children, niece Laura Stiles Helms of Auburn, WA and nephew William B. Stiles of Raleigh. Norma was a force of nature and a “renaissance woman”: a warrior; at one with nature; creative and curious, athletic, a do-er and DIYer; a voracious reader, kind, generous, and resolute; a teacher and mentor. She lived her values and ethics, the Golden Rule figuring prominently. Norma was a rock for many in her lifetime, and an unconditionally loving parent of her children, who adore her forever. Norma loved a challenge and to be of service to others. On her desk remains a cherished plaque that sums up her “MO” beautifully: “Stop me before I volunteer again!” Her artist’s soul and zest expressed themselves in everything she did. At retirement, she took up quilting, which quickly became a passion and led her to the Greenville Quilters’ Guild. She loved those days and years with her cherished Guild members and was pained when her health obliged her to scale back. She nonetheless continued to follow her bliss in textile art until perhaps the last six months of her life. She was a beautiful pianist and vocalist; her soaring high soprano lives on, a joyful memory of home for her children, growing up. She wished a loving mention to her deep water aerobics die-hard aqua friends from the Greenville Fitness Center and credits this 20+ year “addiction” to “making it this far.” She was so proud of being a nurse and alum of Case Western Reserve University’s Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing (class of ’59), as was her mother before her. She always said that the education she received there was ahead of its time and life-changing. She received a Master’s degree in Human Development in her 40s while living in NJ. She excelled in a long and fulfilling career that included nurse administration, psychotherapeutic counseling, and directing development/fund-raising at a crisis counseling agency. Norma and husband Martin made Greenville their home since 1996, the result of Norma’s thoughtful research on great places to live. Thus they wended their way south with their sailboat from Maryland’s Eastern Shore, and from Morristown, NJ and Rochester, NY before that. They lived life to the fullest: traveling, sailing, taking in the marvelous music and arts scene locally, visiting and hosting friends old and new, and their East and West Coast family. Norma was predeceased by Martin, a WWII veteran, in 2019, age 95. No service will be held, rather a family celebration of Norma Rae’s life, at a future date. With our family’s gratitude to Congleton Funeral Home and Cremation Services for their compassionate and professional services. In her memory, please consider a donation to Greenville’s Music Academy of Eastern Carolina, ReLeaf, or another charity of your choice.

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Mrs. Norma Rae Stiles Nabut

May 22, 1936 - June 4, 2022