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Norman Leslie Rowe IV, 87, of Miami, Florida, passed away peacefully on June 14.

Norman was born to parents Norman and Ruth (Schoeneberg) Rowe July 23, 1933, in Saginaw, Michigan. He grew up in Bellerose, New York, where he was fond of playing baseball and racing sailboats on Long Island Sound. He graduated from The Loomis Chaffee School in 1951 and received a degree from the School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University in 1955. While at Cornell, Norman played varsity football and varsity lacrosse, where he played against Syracuse’s Jim Brown in each sport. Upon graduation, Norman was commissioned as a Naval officer and received orders to the USS Boxer serving as one of its 1st Division officers during a western Pacific cruise. He spent many hours on watch as officer-of-the-deck in the South China Sea and had many fascinating stories about that cruise.

After separating from active duty, Norman accepted a job in Chicago with IBM. He continued as a Naval Reservist, eventually rising to the rank of commander and qualifying in submarines. During this time, he met and married Martha Fargo Vincent and started a family. At IBM, Norman’s career advanced quickly and he was promoted several times, ultimately ending up in New Canaan in 1970. Soon after, Norman took on a new promotional position with IBM where he was working closely with interesting sports figures like Reggie Jackson, Rod Laver, Franco Harris, Bucky Dent, and John Havlicek. He hired and had lunch many times with Henny Youngman, whose jokes Norman knew by heart. Norman eventually retired in the late ‘80s but stayed busy doing some consulting work. If, when he was a little boy, you had asked Norman what he wanted to do when he grew up, he would have told you “play centerfield for the Yankees.” And one can never forget how he loved a good black and white submarine movie.

Norman is survived by his son Matthew (Liz) of Madison and his two grandchildren, Nina Rowe and Nelson Rowe.

A private memorial service will be held in Miami with family members in the coming weeks. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Bay Oaks Historic Retirement Residence in Miami, Florida.