Norma Doherty

Surrounded by her beloved children and grandchildren, Norma Annette Doherty (nee Lloyd), aged 83, passed peacefully, at home, on July 8, 2023.

Norma was born on March 11, 1940, in London, England, to Edward and Minnie Claire (Myles) Lloyd.  She joined her three-year-old sister, June Claire, who became a trusted and lifelong friend.  Although her young family was undeniably impacted by the hardships characteristic of WWII, Norma's earliest years in Battersea (South London) were constantly brightened by her loving family, seaside outings, and her abiding love of animals.  The proximity of war could have tarnished those childhood years, but in them, Norma found the seeds of the principles that would ultimately guide her life.  Embracing patience, self-sacrifice, generosity, ingenuity, and motivation, she became an inspired woman of wisdom and integrity.

On New Year's Eve, 1957, Norma and her sister attended a holiday celebration in Picadilly Circus, England.  It was there she met her future husband, Vincent Doherty, a United States Air Force serviceman on leave in London.  The two married just 13 months later, and immediately following their wedding, they temporarily settled on an Air Force base in Salina, Kansas.  While there, they welcomed their first child, a son, Kevin. Two daughters followed in quick succession -- Kim, born in New York City, and Karen, born in London, England.  Her family completed, they finally settled in The Bronx, NY, and it was during that time that Norma began saving for a downpayment on a house.  Her discipline and focus allowed her dream of home ownership to be realized when, in 1968, the family settled into a small home in Nanuet, NY.  As her children neared the completion of high school in 1977, the family upgraded to a larger home in West Nyack, NY.


During the later years of home and family, Norma began to yearn for an outlet for her natural creativity.  Gardening, painting, sewing, small woodworking projects, and traditional domesticity made way for a small upholstery business she shared with her sister-in-law, Rita Hennelly.  Although successful, Norma decided to become a hairdresser, and after obtaining her license, she opened her own salons -- one in Tallman, NY, and the other in Spring Valley, NY.  She owned and operated Dynamic Hair Design through the 1980s and 1990s.  She even tried her hand at commercial modeling in her sixth decade of life.  Beating the odds in Manhattan, she found almost immediate success when she was booked to film an infomercial.  However, the glamour quickly faded when she realized that a successful shoot was long and less than exciting.  She also moved to Congers, NY, and for 32 years, lived in the spacious home of her daughter, Karen, and son-in-law, Richard, and their four children, Nicholas, Jillian, Krista, and Julia.  In Congers, she enjoyed a wonderful, carefree chapter of her life that included beautiful vacations, regular trips to her sister's home in San Diego, CA, countless Broadway shows, many concerts, line dancing, plenty of shopping sprees, graduations, reservoirs of English Tea, and the company of her beloved Tea Cup Yorkie, Lola.  

She was extremely proud of becoming an American citizen, something she accomplished in the  mid-1990s.

Norma was predeceased by her parents, Edward and Minnie Claire, her sister, June Claire, her son-in-law, Robert Whittemore, Jr., and her former husband, Vincent.  She also leaves behind her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren:  her son, Kevin Joseph, of West Nyack, NY, and his children, Jessica Elizabeth Doherty and Kristin Doherty, both of Rock Hill, South Carolina;  her daughter, Kim Anne (Doherty) Whittemore, of West Nyack, NY, and her children, Rachel Catherine Whittemore of West Nyack, NY, and Robert Morrison Whittemore, III, and his wife, Krista Goldstein Whittemore, of Clemmons, North Carolina;  her daughter, Karen Marie (Doherty) Lugo, her son-in-law, Richard Lugo, of Congers, NY, their children, Nicholas Richard, of Hoboken, NJ, Jillian Marie Lugo Hanigan and her husband, Michael, of River Vale, NJ, Krista Eve Lugo, of Hoboken, NJ, and Julia Hope Lugo, of Congers, NY.  Also left behind are Norma's great-grandchildren, Connor Whittemore-DellaPorte, of West Nyack, NY, Leo Tremper IV, of Rock Hill, SC, and Harper Rue Hanigan, of River Vale, NJ.  She will be missed by her sister-in-law, Rita Hennelly,  brother-in-law, Donald Timm, 16 nieces, and five nephews.  Her friends and neighbors will also mourn her loss.

Visitation will be held at Wyman-Fisher Funeral Home, 100 Franklin Avenue, Pearl River, NY on Wednesday, July 12, 2023, from 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM.

A funeral mass will be celebrated at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church, 128 Parrott Road, West Nyack, NY on Thursday, July 13, 2023, at 10:00 AM.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a small donation to Sloan Kettering Hospital at mskcc.org

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