Obituary: Telesco, Norma

Publication information The Patriot Ledger, 21 Dec, 2013

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Telesco, Norma Grace (Kettells – Roelke – Petersen) of Hingham, formerly of Cohasset, passed away on December 15, 2013 at the age of 94, surrounded by loving family and friends. She was born on May 24, 1919 in St. Louis, Missouri to the late Jesse Cleveland Kettells of Calhoune, Iowa and Matilda (Mierendorff) Kettells of Omaha, Nebraska.

She is predeceased by her husbands, Earl Roelke, Peter Petersen and James Telesco, the latter she married in 1962 and with whom she lived in Cohasset until he died in 1987, after which she moved to Hingham in 1992. Norma was a very successful Real Estate Broker and businesswoman for many years – a top producer for Jack Conway and Dwyer & Mullin until she started Home Center Realty (now Home Center Sotheby’s International Realty) in Hingham at the age of 61, and which her daughter, Gail Petersen Bell took over in 1987 when Norma retired.

Norma was a smart, spirited and generous woman who loved gardening, crossword puzzles, championship bridge, family poker games, entertaining family and friends and helping others in need. She was an active member of the Plymouth County Board of Realtors, The Neighborhood Club of Quincy and the Unitarian Church in Cohasset. She was also a former member of the Eastern Star.

Norma is survived by her children Gail Petersen Bell, and her fiancé, Stephan Bartlett of Hingham and Hull, Gary Roelke and his wife Patricia of Charlotte, North Carolina, daughter-in-law Kay Roelke of Ridgewood, New Jersey; grandchildren Christopher Bell, Cheryl Finger, Jody Van Houten, Karen McCloskey, Brian and Jason Roelke, and thirteen great grandchildren.

She is predeceased by her loving son, Edward Wayne Roelke.

Internment will be private at the Cohasset Central Cemetery and a memorial celebration will be held at the Unitarian Church on the Cohasset Common, 23 North Main Street, on Saturday, January 18, 2014 at 11:00 a.m. Luncheon to follow at the Parish House.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Norma’s memory may be made to Care Alternatives Hospice of Massachusetts, 100 Locke Drive, Marlborough, MA 01752.