Lasting Memories

Norman H. Freed
July 18, 1938-June 6, 2022
Palo Alto, California

Norman H. Freed died on June 6, 2022. He was 83 years of age.

Norman was adventurous and lived his life to love, to teach to help others and to be fiercely ethical. He was intelligent and sympathetic, curious and both tough and tender. He played the sax, was a member of a band and enjoyed exploring coffee houses and book stores.

He was born in San Francisco. An only child, his father was a musician and traveled with the family throughout the country as a sales rep. His mother was a homemaker.

When young he was involved in an automobile accident and needed brain surgery to correct the trauma. With determination he walked the long path to recovery and he did. To prove his return to health, he hitch hiked across the country and entered the US Navy reserves.

Then college and the pursuit of higher education. First, he graduated from UC Berkeley, San Francisco State and received his Masters degree in Psychology from San Jose State. Finally, he earned his Ph.D from the University of Kansas in Psychology.

He trained as a therapist at the University of Kansas Medical Center, taught at the University of Kansas, practiced in Kansas City and eventually found a position as an adjunct Professor at Stanford. He was in private practice in Palo Alto since 1978 and authored a book on innovative treatment in clinical psychology, entitled, “Analytic Construction with Moderate and Severe Disturbance”.

At a Valentine’s Day dance at a Temple in Redwood City he met his wife Millie. Norman was a loving husband, kind and caring. He was generous and charitable. He was of good character, respectful and reliable.

He worked to integrate the nation, supported civil rights and lived by strong and elegant values. He was always very independent and honest and that brought him the respect he so deserved.

He will be remembered for loving in a world in need of love, for helping others to reach emotional balance, for teaching and guiding generations of helpers, for making music that uplifts the soul, for enduring the challenges and for enriching his life and the life of those who loved him back and who appreciated his wisdom and expertise.

He is survived by his wife, Millie, married to him for 16 years. Millie said, “Norman was a good, kind and decent man, a man of quality, and I will miss him. Norman said to me “If I should go, I want you to know that I am dying a happy man because I had a rich and meaningful life and you were part of it. Just know that you were really loved”.