Dr. Charley W. Norris

Charley W. Norris, M.D., passed away September 1, 2011, at the University of Kansas Hospital after a 12-year battle with cancer.

Charley was born January 3, 1933, near Morganville, Kansas, to George and Mary Kaiser Norris. His parents died when he was a young child, and he subsequently lived for a few years with his sister, Hazel Wolf, and her family, near Clay Center. During high school he lived with a foster mother, Ethel Bumsted, and her family.

Immediately after graduating from Clay Center High School in 1951, Charley joined the Navy, and served for five years as a corpsman and laboratory technician at Philadelphia and Bethesda Naval Hospitals, and aboard the U.S.S. Kermit Roosevelt.

Charley graduated from the University of Kansas in 1960, and from the University of Kansas School of Medicine in 1964. He interned at the LDS Hospital in Salt Lake City, followed by a year of training in general surgery there. In 1969 he completed a surgical residency in Otolaryngology at Boston City Hospital / Tufts University, and he remained there as a staff physician for two years.

In 1971 Dr. Norris joined the faculty of the Ear Nose Throat Department of the University of Kansas School of Medicine, where he started and developed their Head and Neck Surgery and Oncology program. He served as chair of the ENT department during the 1980’s, and he was Chief of Staff of the KUMC Hospital for three years.

While at KUMC, Dr. Norris developed innovative surgical techniques. He was a pioneer in the use of the laser in ENT surgery, and presented courses in laser application and safety. In the early 1990’s, Dr. Norris developed the program for the sub-specialty of ENT Allergy at KUMC, making it the third university ENT department in the U.S. to have an allergy practice within the department. Dr. Norris was a very effective and highly regarded clinical teacher and helped train more than fifty young men and women as ENT physicians. He retired in 1998 as an emeritus professor.

Dr. Norris was a fellow of the American College of Surgeons, and Diplomat of the American Academy of Otolaryngic Head and Neck Surgery. He was a member of the Triologic Society, the Head and Neck Surgery Society, the Society of University Otolaryngologists, the AMA, and the Kansas Medical Society. He seved a term as president of the Kansas City Society of Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology.

Ouside his work as a physician, Charley loved to travel, was a voracious reader, and enjoyed studying history. When his childern were young he was active in both Y-Indian Guides and the Boy Scouts. He also loved backpacking with his sons and gardening. In retirement before his health decline, he enjoyed guest teaching high school anatomy in the Olathe School District.

During his tenure at KUMC, he lived in Olathe. He moved to Sandia Park, NM in 2002, and returned to the Kansas City area earlier this year.

Dr. Norris is survived by his wife of 47 years, Linda Larson Norris; son Andrew (Cecilia) Norris; son Erik Norris; three grandchildren; and a sister, Jean Lund.

Dr. Norris was preceded in death by his parents; a sister, Hazel Wolf; a brother, Homer Norris; and a brother, Warren Norris.

The family suggests memorial donations to the Charley W. Norris Education Fund, c/o The Department of Otolaryngology, 3901 Rainbow, Kansas City, Kansas 66106.

Graveside Service and Memorial Service

A graveside service was held at 11:30 a.m., Thursday, September 8, 2011, at Mt. Hope Cemetery in Topeka, Kansas. A memorial service will be held Saturday, September 17, 2011, at 11 a.m. in the Spencer Chapel located within the KU Medical Center in Kansas City, KS. A reception will follow in the Atrium area of the School of Nursing Building also at KU Medical Center.