Talofa Family and Friends,

 As you all know, Norman, my soulmate, my best friend, the love of my life for 31 years lost his battle to pancreatic cancer. After being diagnosed on June 16th, 2022, Norman arrived in heaven on July 29th, 2022. It all happened so fast. Our world forever changed that night the Lord called him home at 51 years old. He was such a loving Dad to our sons Moddy and Anthony, and he cherished our first granddaughter Kehlani. He wanted to be called G-Pop. Each day is a mixture of remembering him as my sweet and adorable husband who did everything he could each day to make me feel loved and special. My husband loved life and lived it to the fullest and he always said “every moment counts". He was such a God-Fearing man and every sacrifice he made being on deployment was for us, his family. We had plans to travel more and grow old together. We were empty nesters and we enjoyed hanging out together. I will do everything I can to keep your memories alive Handsome. You are so missed. You can rest now, we got this.

Norman proudly served his country in the United States Navy for 24 years before retiring with an honorable discharge in January 2021. He also worked for the Unites States Postal Service for over 20 years. To this day, he continues to be highly spoken of by his shipmates, friends, family, and many others that he has positively impacted. His faith in God could not be shaken and only grew stronger each day while battling this deadly cancer. He was a true anchor for the Toia family. Norman always brought a sense of humor, love, and kindness with him no matter who was around. The memories of him will forever live on. He will never be forgotten.

We are going to help fight this cancer in my husband’s honor, our hero, Chief Norman Toia to keep his legacy going. This will be our second year joining the Purple Stride. Please join my team, walk with us and donate if you can. The PurpleStride San Diego 2024 will be on Saturday, April 27th at De Anza Cove at Mission Bay Park. My personal goal is to raise as much as I can to help find a cure.

Pancreatic cancer is a leading cause of death mostly because there are no early detection tools to diagnose it in its early stages. Typically, it takes 10-20 years for pancreatic cancer to develop in a patient. The pancreas is deep inside the body, so early tumors can't be seen or felt by health care providers during routine physical exams. People usually have no symptoms until the cancer has become very large or has already spread to other organs.

Thank you in advance for your support. We are forever grateful!