Minnie Heisman Norman was born on March 10th, 1894 to William Heisman and Sara Cohen Heisman in P'yatyhory, Ukraine. The town was a little village that is now a suburb of Kiev. The story of her early years is lost to history. However, she did brave a solo journey to America in 1912 landing in New York. There, she was a garment worker and participated in the International Ladies Garment Workers Union strikes of 1913, leaning in with all of her 4 foot 10 inch might. On August 13, 1916 she married Avrum Norman who came from Buki, a town just 100 km from where she grew up in Ukraine. They soon moved to Boston, where several of Avrum’s family had settled and had their first child, Sally, in 1918. Due to the post war economic downturn they sought better opportunities in Buffalo, NY where her brother lived.

Life was not easy for an immigrant family, especially in a city whose best days were fast fading into the past. Minnie managed a kosher, traditional home while Avrum worked at various jobs to make ends meet. Their family added three boys: Phillip in 1920, Nathan (1923) and William (1927). During prohibition, Avrum took to making and selling wine and spirits leading to several police raids. Minnie not only had to deal with scrapes with the law, but also the constant hijinks of boys growing up at loose ends, which was the norm of the era, and a thoroughly modern daughter eager to test limits. The bemused boys humored her efforts to maintain discipline as she demanded that they stand still while she punished them as she stood on a chair wielding a fly swatter. The family found itself on and off welfare, consequently moving around the Buffalo area several times during the Depression years.

The difficulties of the 1930’s gave way to the war years of the 1940’s during which, at one point, all of her boys were deployed overseas. Phillip was stationed at Pearl Harbor during the Japanese attack. He was not able to communicate with the family for several weeks to let them know he was ok. Somehow she maintained order and sanity through the strength of her character and love of her family.

She was rewarded for her steadfastness as she was able to welcome all of her boys home and delight in the weddings of all of her children and the birth of 9 grandchildren. During her later years she was able to enjoy the expanding family and spend more time with her beloved Avrum. Her grandchildren remember her during this time as kind with a good sense of humor and a wonderful cook and baker. Her honey cake recipe lives on. She passed away in peace at the age of 68 on March 28, 1958. Her legacy of love, bravery, tenacity and loyalty live on in her grandchildren and their grandchildren. Her memory is truly a blessing.