Older Adult Enjoys Service Activities
NORMA BISHOP will soon be 90 years old - but she still likes to play! She enjoys life to the fullest, and she has no trouble filling her free time with a myriad of fun experiences and interesting things to do. Her favorite way to spend leisure hours seems to center around service activities: finding enjoyment in doing things for others.
As one of eleven children in the Tally family, Norma was born July 2, 1917 in St. Clair County, Missouri, and she is a product of Missouri schools. She completed grades 1 through 12, plus two years of college, in Bolivar. In 1937 Norma married Lucas Bishop, and in the years ahead the couple had five children. Norma finished a bachelor's degree at Southwest Missouri State in Springfield; and, she earned a master's degree at Central Missouri State in Warrensburg. After college graduation, she first became a teacher in a one-room schoolhouse, and later taught at the elementary, high school, and college levels. In early 2007, Norma was awarded an honorary doctorate at the institution where she had earned an associate degree some 71 years earlier: Southwest Baptist University.
Travel has been a big part of the life of Norma Bishop. She has taken great pleasure in seeing new places and experiencing different cultures. And, she has given unselfishly of her time and talent in various locations around the world. During the Olympic Games in Sydney (2000), Salt Lake City (2002), and Athens (2004), Norma served as a volunteer par excellence. She also donated her services at the Special Olympics World Games in North Carolina in 1999. Some of her tasks at the Olympics included meeting airplanes with arriving athletes, escorting athletes, meeting buses with members of news organizations, supervising recreation areas for families of athletes, assisting the Salvation Army in their services, and serving as a lay witness for Christ. In June 2006, Norma traveled to Russia to help students prepare for TOEFL, the Test of English as a Foreign Language.
Opportunities for volunteer service are abundant in the United States and around the world. Many organizations and ministries have benefited from Norma Bishop's thoughtful and generous spirit of volunteerism. She has taught Bible study classes; she has gone on mission trips; she has been a speaker for women's groups; she has served on various boards and committees, including Habitat for Humanity, and Life Center International; and, she has given tirelessly of her free time in service to SBU in Bolivar, her hometown alma mater.
In addition to her many service activities, Norma Bishop enjoys spending time with family and friends. Often, she is part of a group which gathers for meals, visiting, playing games, or watching theatrical productions. Norma continues to be an active participant in the Relay for Life. And, she loves to swim, read, and cross-stitch; she has completed thirteen quilts!
"Norma Bishop is the quintessential SBU graduate, and the university's biggest ambassador," says Sandra Brown, an SBU associate professor, librarian, and close friend. "She has boundless energy, and is a role model for women - especially students. She is one of my heroes."
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--Norma Bishop is pictured above in the place where she greets visitors arriving at Southwest Baptist University.
As one of eleven children in the Tally family, Norma was born July 2, 1917 in St. Clair County, Missouri, and she is a product of Missouri schools. She completed grades 1 through 12, plus two years of college, in Bolivar. In 1937 Norma married Lucas Bishop, and in the years ahead the couple had five children. Norma finished a bachelor's degree at Southwest Missouri State in Springfield; and, she earned a master's degree at Central Missouri State in Warrensburg. After college graduation, she first became a teacher in a one-room schoolhouse, and later taught at the elementary, high school, and college levels. In early 2007, Norma was awarded an honorary doctorate at the institution where she had earned an associate degree some 71 years earlier: Southwest Baptist University.
Travel has been a big part of the life of Norma Bishop. She has taken great pleasure in seeing new places and experiencing different cultures. And, she has given unselfishly of her time and talent in various locations around the world. During the Olympic Games in Sydney (2000), Salt Lake City (2002), and Athens (2004), Norma served as a volunteer par excellence. She also donated her services at the Special Olympics World Games in North Carolina in 1999. Some of her tasks at the Olympics included meeting airplanes with arriving athletes, escorting athletes, meeting buses with members of news organizations, supervising recreation areas for families of athletes, assisting the Salvation Army in their services, and serving as a lay witness for Christ. In June 2006, Norma traveled to Russia to help students prepare for TOEFL, the Test of English as a Foreign Language.
Opportunities for volunteer service are abundant in the United States and around the world. Many organizations and ministries have benefited from Norma Bishop's thoughtful and generous spirit of volunteerism. She has taught Bible study classes; she has gone on mission trips; she has been a speaker for women's groups; she has served on various boards and committees, including Habitat for Humanity, and Life Center International; and, she has given tirelessly of her free time in service to SBU in Bolivar, her hometown alma mater.
In addition to her many service activities, Norma Bishop enjoys spending time with family and friends. Often, she is part of a group which gathers for meals, visiting, playing games, or watching theatrical productions. Norma continues to be an active participant in the Relay for Life. And, she loves to swim, read, and cross-stitch; she has completed thirteen quilts!
"Norma Bishop is the quintessential SBU graduate, and the university's biggest ambassador," says Sandra Brown, an SBU associate professor, librarian, and close friend. "She has boundless energy, and is a role model for women - especially students. She is one of my heroes."
__________
--Norma Bishop is pictured above in the place where she greets visitors arriving at Southwest Baptist University.
posted by DrJ @ 3:51 PM
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