Wanetta J. Norton

Boonville- Wanetta Jane Norton, 89, formerly of Constableville, Boonville, Utica, and most recently of Ballston Spa, NY, passed away peacefully while in Hospice care at Capstone Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing in Amsterdam, NY on Sunday, July 13.

Wanetta, daughter of Deforest Flansburg and Jane Jackson Flansburg, was born in a grand old stone house in Turin, NY, delivered by her maternal grandmother on January 19, 1936. She grew up in the area around Lyons Falls and Greig and graduated from General Martin Central School, Glenfield, with the Class of 1953.

After high school, among other employment, Wanetta worked waitressing in Potsdam,

and at a grocery store in Lowville. She and her best friend Irene Rhone also had an adventure and took the long bus ride to Florida to see what kind of jobs and life the Sunshine State had to offer, but Wanetta soon realized that Lewis County meant home and family for her, and she returned.

On August 2, 1958, Wanetta and John Albert Norton were joined in marriage at the Boonville Methodist Church. Five years later, in what was a group effort by John, his father Curtis Norton, and the Flansburg family (plus a few friends), land was cleared and a new home began to take shape in the woods on John Street in Constableville. The Nortons raised their four children there in the days and years that followed. The couple eventually divorced after the children were grown.

Later in life, taking a path guided by her compassionate nature, Wanetta earned her certificate as a nurse’s assistant. She was employed at Sunset Nursing Home in Boonville for 19 years as a certified nurse’s assistant, retiring in 2002. She was well-loved not only by the residents for which she provided care, but also by the appreciative families of those residents.

In retirement, Wanetta greatly enjoyed annual visits to the southern Maine coastline with her daughter, Patricia. She cherished her memories of the 2016 family trip to Tuscany planned by John and his wife, Kim. She traveled the canals of Venice, sampled wines at picturesque vineyards, dropped in to view Michelangelo’s David in Florence, and discovered a new favorite dish: cannelloni. However, she refused to even taste the wild boar stew.

Wanetta loved to bake, particularly when using her mother’s many delicious recipes, and she greatly enjoyed sharing these treats with family and friends. Her children were often excited to come home from school and discover that it had been Mom’s day to make fried cake donuts. Wanetta also fed wild birds and enjoyed watching them. She loved the cats who shared her home over the years: Natasha, Molly & Susie. She enjoyed finding and sharing old family photos. But most of all, she loved all those in her large, extended family. She looked forward to family reunions and loved watching the families of her siblings grow, and she was there to help care for her parents as they aged. Wanetta was a devoted, loving, and supportive mother, who was later filled with joy in welcoming her grandsons Jack and Ben to her world, finding amusement in everything they did.

Wanetta is survived by her children: Patricia of Glenville, NY, John (Kimberly) of Gansevoort, NY, Christopher of Albuquerque, NM, and Michael of The Villages, FL; two grandchildren: Jack and Benjamin (sons of John and Kimberly). Also surviving is her brother, Duane Flansburg (Eileen) of Camden, NY; her sister Jeanette Colasanti of Rome, NY; two sisters-in-law: Patricia Flansburg and Belinda Flansburg; and many nephews and nieces. She was predeceased by her parents and her brothers: Thomas, Deforest (Rita), James (Colleen), and Gerald.

A calling hour will be held on Saturday, July 19th from 10:00-11:00 am, with her funeral to follow immediately afterward at 11:00 am at Trainor Funeral Home, Inc., 143 Schuyler St., Boonville. Interment will be private in St. Joseph’s Cemetery, Boonville at a later date.

Memorial contributions may be made to Constableville United Methodist Church (P.O. Box 9, Turin, NY 13473), Constableville Fire Company (P.O. Box 438, Constableville, NY 13325) or to Boonville Fire Company (P.O. Box 164, Boonville, NY 13309).