Obituary: Norman ‘Ronnie’ William Hartsfield

Norman “Ronnie” William Hartsfield, of Montclair, died on Aug. 15, 2021. He was 75.

Mr. Hartsfield was the son of Rachel (née Parker) Hartsfield and the late Norman Alston Hartsfield, also Montclair residents.

Born in Newark, he lived in Montclair most of his life. He graduated from Arts High School in Newark and from St. Peter’s University in Jersey City. 

He pursued a career in banking for more than 25 years, and afterward worked several years as a teacher’s assistant for children with special needs in the Montclair school system.

Mr. Hartsfield was an exceptional and caring son, brother, uncle and friend who was always there to help others. His compassion for others was apparent throughout his life, as seen in the volunteer work he did with children with disabilities and the Thanksgivings he spent serving and delivering food to families in need.

He is survived by his mother, Rachel; sister, Denise Sweeney; brother, Eric, and his wife, Ollie; nieces, Andrea Sweeney and Erica Hartsfield; nephew, Cameron Hartsfield and his wife, Ayana; grand-nephews, Osiris, Beniamino, Jaire and Kahri, and many dear friends and family.

Visitation will be Wednesday, Sept. 1, from 10 a.m. to noon at Woody Home for Services, 163 Oakwood Ave, Orange. The funeral service will follow immediately, from noon to 1 p.m.  Services will be viewable on Zoom via the Woody Home website, woodyhomeforservices.com.

To keep Mr. Hartsfield’s commitment to helping others alive, the family requests that, In lieu of flowers, donations be made to Coalition for the Homeless at coalitionforthehomeless.org or to My Kota Bear (a charity helping families of premature babies in New Jersey) at mykotabear.com/donate.