Norma Lee Barkley

Born Norma Lee Wright on February 4, 1930, in Fruitland, Maryland, Norma was the fourth of nine children from Drucilla Muzzalee and Sinclair Wright. Norma Lee attended Fruitland Elementary School and graduated from Salisbury Colored High School in 1947.¹ She then went on to pursue degrees in Sociology and Business from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, as well as taking a course in family planning and living at Bowie State University.²

In 1950, Norma married her high school sweetheart, Marion “Bud” Barkley, who she would be with until his death in 2017. For over 63 years, Norma mentored youth as a bus contractor and driver alongside her husband. One woman looked back on her time as a kid on Norma’s bus, and recounted Norma as a “no-nonsense” woman who would keep her kids in check and said the kids needed someone like Mrs. Barkley to keep them in check.³

Norma’s community involvement did not stop as a mentor to the kids on the buses. She was extremely dedicated to every part of her community and was program chair and co-founder (serving over 30 years) under the Tri-County Organizations Coalition, Inc. for the annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration. This celebration was held at the Wicomico Youth and Civic Center to honor King and bring the community together. It was a day filled with choir and dance performances, a buffet, and readings of essays on what King’s “Dream” meant to people in the community. On January 17, 1998, as the banquet spokeswoman, Norma said of King: “He made us all realize we are all human beings on this planet that should all treat each other like human beings, and that we should learn to treat each other as equals.”⁴

Norma was also a highly dedicated member of her church, St. Paul AME Zion Church, a member of the Advisory Board for Wicomico County Foster Grandparents, and in 1993 was introduced in the news as a guest speaker for “Grandparents Day” at her church.⁵

Mrs. Barkley was a pioneer in many ways. She was the first noted, Black-employed bookkeeper during the integration period on the Eastern Shore of Maryland and would become the first Black judge of the Orphans’ Court in Wicomico County in 1982. In 1986 Norma was appointed to be Chief Judge by Governor Harry Hughes, and then later re-appointed by Governor Willam Schaefer and she would serve for over 30 years.⁶

Mrs. Barkley was quoted saying, “I think I’ve also tried to help people even when it’s been past my jurisdiction.”⁷ Karen Lemon, from Wicomico County Register of Wills, backed this up with her comment stating, “Judge Barkley had the ability to see into peoples’ hearts and appreciate their feelings.”⁸

Mrs. Norma Lee Barkley passed away on April 3, 2021, but she is survived by nieces, nephews, godchildren, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and other relatives and friends that loved and cherished her. Norma is remembered fondly as a “caring soul”⁹ as many spoke to honor her life in saying that she brought people together, was always involved in her grandkids’ lives, and was known for passing along her wisdom to the next generation (both in her bloodline and her community). Sharon Morris of Salisbury honors Norma in saying, “She was steadfast in faith, strong in business and diligent in community affairs” and “a leader who created a pathway for other Black women.”¹⁰