Norma Jane PAQUETTE

Norma Jane Paquette went to be with the Lord on Sunday, Dec. 4, 2005. Funeral: 1:30 p.m. Wednesday at Wilkirson-Hatch-Bailey Funeral Home in Waco. Graveside service: Oakwood Cemetery. Visitation: 5 to 8 p.m. Tuesday.Memorials: Those wishing to make memorials may do so to the Dallas Chapter of the Mental Health Mental Retardation Association.Norma Jane was born July 1, 1955, in Valley Forge, Pa. She was raised for most of her life in Fort Worth. In 1976, she relocated with her mother to Waco. She spent the last 14 years of her life in Dallas, where she was cared for by her family. Norma was born with Down syndrome, but that did not stop her zest for life and living. When she was young, her favorite activities were the train ride and seeing the alligators at the Fort Worth Zoo on Sundays. She also enjoyed going to the circus and to any of the Disney on Ice shows at the Fort Worth Convention Center. Her favorite movie was "The Wizard of Oz." Halloween, Christmas and Valentine's Day were her favorite holidays. She never missed any of these parties sponsored by the Dallas ARC.She will be sorely missed by all of her family and friends.Special thanks go to her sister-in-law, Susan Barnes Paquette, and Betty Kendricks, who assisted her for the last five years.Norma Jane was preceded in death by her father, Maj. Maurice G. Paquette Sr., and her mother, Alice Dean Paquette. Survivors: Norma Jane leaves behind her brother, Maurice G. Paquette; brother and sister-in-law, John L. and Susan B. Paquette, all of Dallas; brother and sister-in-law, Louis D. and wife, Cynthia A. Paquette, of Fort Worth; nephews, James R. Paquette and wife, Julie M. Paquette, of Houston and Benjamin E. Paquette of Denton; niece, Amanda K. Paquette of Fort Worth; her great-niece, Rilyn J. Paquette of Houston; and her caregiver, Betty Kendricks. Published in the Star-Telegram on 12/6/2005.