Toft Funeral Home and Crematory
2001 Columbus Ave
Sandusky, OH 44870
Phone: 419-625-8816
Website: http://www.toftfh.com
View All Obituaries from Toft Funeral Home and Crematory
Norman E. Guiher, 80, of Wakeman, passed away Wednesday June 28, 2023 at Dublin Senior Assisted Living.
He was born on August 20, 1942 to Elmer and Louise (Tausch) Guiher..
Norm was a quiet, pertinacious man with a gentle sense of humor and many passions in in life; and he had quite a knack for turning those passions into paying occupations and businesses. Norm grew up in South Euclid, and was the middle son, with two siblings, Louise and Elmer (Butch) Guiher.
Aside from math, for which he had a natural gift, Norm wasn't interested in academics. Instead, he could usually be found in the garage, working on his first love, his car. This was the beginning of a life-long passion for cars; and eventually Norm bought, fixed up, and sold countless cars from all eras. Seeing an opportunity to work on engines as an occupation, Norm joined the Air Force in 1960. He was stationed at Walker Air Force Base in Roswell, New Mexico, where he worked as a mechanic on B-52 engines and flew as part of a maintenance crew during the Vietnam war. It was in Roswell where Norm's passion for flying really took off, and he took advantage of every opportunity offered to enlisted airmen to learn to fly, eventually earning several flight certifications. He met and married his first wife, Gay Davis and together they had three children, Mitzy, Kelli, and Norm, aka Mikey.
After six years of service, Norm became a small-craft pilot and flight instructor for Beacon Aviation in Cleveland and from there, moved to Wellington to became a FAA air traffic controller in Oberlin, where he worked until retirement at age 50. During this time, Norm earned his sailplane instructor's license and introduced scores of people to soaring at Botsford Airport, outside of Wellington.
While at FAA, he met and married his colleague, Anita Hanko, who introduced him to his third life passion: Clydesdale horses. Together, they started Clear View Farms in Berlin Heights, OH and grew it into a successful horse boarding and Clydesdale breeding facility. Norm and Anita, along with a group of dedicated and wildly creative fellow horse-lovers, would take Clydesdale hitches to fairs and private events. They also started a popular Christmas tree farm and raised sheep. But mainly, Norm and Anita worked together to make Clear View Farms a wonderful place for horses and a second home for their horse-loving owners. Norm loved to drive his six-horse hitch in some nail-biting conditions (like next to the lion cages in the Milwaukee Circus Fair!); but he was happiest tinkering around the barn and working on his next project.
Norm is survived by his first wife, Gay Guiher, and their three children, Mitzy Taggart (who inherited her dad's knack for math and became an engineer), Kelli Fleischmann (who inherited Norm's managerial skills and is vice-president of Water Quality Association), and Norman Michael Guiher (who inherited his dad's obsession with cars and has a successful career designing components at Honda). Norm is also survived by six grandsons.
He is preceded in death by his second wife of 44 years, Anita Guiher, his parents, Elmer and Louise, and his sister, Louise Ewart.
Friends may call on Sunday, July 9, 2023 from 12:30 pm to 2:00 pm at Toft Funeral Home, Wakeman Chapel, 16 Cooper Street, Wakeman, OH. Graveside services will be held on Monday, July 10, 2023 at 11:00 am at Cable Road Cemetery.
Toft Funeral Home, Wakeman Chapel, is handling arrangements. Condolences may be shared online at toftfuneralhome.com.
