Winifred Latimer Norman

Winifred Latimer Norman
October 7, 1914 – February 4, 2014
Community Church of New York

• Granddaughter of inventor and poet Lewis Howard Latimer, who escaped slavery and became active in the Massachusetts abolition movement
• Attended Flushing High school, was one of 15 Black graduates of Hunter College in 1935, earned a master’s degree at New York University, and was a charter member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority
• Along with her brother Gerald, worked to preserve the Lewis Latimer House in Flushing, a museum recognized in the National Register of Historic Places
• Represented the Latimer family at commemorations throughout her life; was honored by the Duquesne Light Company for her and her brother’s work to bring the story of Lewis Latimer to the next generation
• Co-wrote a children’s book with Lily Patterson entitled Lewis Latimer: Scientist, published in 1994 with a foreword by Coretta Scott King; her writings are included in the Latimer Family Papers at the Queens Public Library
• As an active member of Community Church of New York, became a member of the Fourth Universalist Society in the City of New York, and served on the Board of Trustees of the Unitarian Universalist Association
• Maintained membership in the International Association for Religious Freedom and the International Association for Liberal Religious Women
• Was honored by the Fourth Universalist Society with the creation of the Winifred Latimer Norman Award in the area of Social Justice