Norman Minekime

Mr. Norman (Norm) Minekime, 65, of Damascus, Maryland, passed peacefully from this life on Saturday, September 21, 2019 at Gilchrist of Howard County in Columbia, MD.
Born on May 6, 1954 in Springville, NY, and raised in Collins, NY, he was the son of the late Wesley Minekime and Jane (Velzy) Minekime.
Norm graduated from Rochester Institute of Technology in 1977 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics and served in the Unites States Army for 8 ½ years, being honorably discharged with numerous commendations, and after serving 2 more years with the Army Reserves, separated with the final rank of Major.  After his service in the Armed Forces, he worked as a Systems Enterprise Architect and government contractor for a number of companies for over 30 years.  He was also a member of the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi.
Norm was an active member of Damascus United Methodist Church for 25 years and served on both the Staff Pastor Parish Relations and Missions Committees.  He was a trained Volunteers in Mission (VIM) leader and participated in or co-lead VIM mission teams to the Hopi Reservation in Arizona, New Orleans (post- hurricane Katrina), Virginia Beach and North Carolina (post-hurricane Matthew).
He was also a member of Damascus American Legion Post 171 and served as both Post Adjutant and Finance Officer and was awarded a Life Membership by his comrades for his service to the Post.
In addition to his mission work, Norm was a perennially optimistic fan of the Buffalo Bills, Baltimore Ravens, and University of Maryland Terrapins football teams, and Buffalo Sabres and Washington Capitals hockey teams.  He enjoyed reading, hiking and going to movies, especially Marvel, Star Trek and Star Wars, and James Bond movies.
Norm is survived by his wife of nearly 34 years, Cheryl (Allen) Minekime, his brother, Dr. James Minekime (Carol (Koepnick) Minekime); two nieces, Christine Minekime and Margret Lynch; three nephews, Jonathan Minekime (Ashley (Bouchard) Minekime), Bradley Allen and Sean Lynch; one great-nephew, Wesley Cole Minekime as well as a number of cousins, sisters-in-law and one brother-in-law.
Family will receive friends at Damascus United Methodist Church on Saturday, October 5, 2019 from 10:30 am - 11:30 am. A memorial service will follow at 11:30 am.  At the conclusion of the memorial service, Damascus American Legion Post 171 will conduct a Post Everlasting ceremony.  Military Honors will be held at the conclusion of the service.  A luncheon and a time of fellowship will immediately follow in the church hall.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to:
Damascus United Methodist Church
American Legion Post 171
Gilchrist (Hospice) of Howard County
Expressions of sympathy may be offered at StaufferFuneralHome.com.