Vale Norman Sumner

Norman Sumner (Norm) was born on the 17th of November, 1938. He was the youngest of 4 children to Leslie, John and Stella Sumner.

Norm grew up behind the family’s hardware shop at New Canterbury Rd, Hurlstone Park. He started school at Yeo Park Infants, then to Canterbury Boys Primary School, then to Dulwich Hill Boy’s High. Norm certainly learned practical skills from a young age and he turned his hand to anything.

Norm moved to Berrilee around 1955 when he was about 17, this is where he met Wendy Venner who lived across the road. They courted for about 4 years before getting married at St Jude’s Church at Dural on the 23rd of September 1961.

Norm set to work building their house on Bay Rd, Berrilee where they have lived for approximately 60 years. Norm and Wendy have 3 children.

Norm had many jobs including working in a licorice factory, boilermaker at Rikers, working for himself as a handyman, and also delivering water, he was a production manager at Brooks Moylan Tiles and Norman’s last job was at Hornsby Council.

Norm retired about 16 years ago and kept busy with the history of Berrilee, and his main focus was why the boundary for Berrilee had changed and the sign moved from Calabash Rd. He was involved in relocating the oldest Methodist Church from Upper McDonald Valley to Vision Valley in Arcadia.

Norman was the proud grandfather of 5 grandchildren and he loved spending with them. Norman Sumner passed away 12th of November 2023 and was privately cremated.