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Norma Jean Gunter bourred into heaven on Thursday July 3, 2025. Born in Beaver, WV on December 21, 1933.
"Mrs. Gunter" as she was affectionately known by the thousands of her dance students, dedicated her life to her dancing and teaching dance. From an early age she was fascinated with the dancing in the movies in the 1930's. She began her formal dance training with Mrs. Emma S. Beard in Beckley, WV at the age of 9 and was a phenomenal dancer that loved all forms of dance and learning new things. Mrs. Beard introduced her and chaperoned her first ever trip in her late teens to New York City where she studied with the most notable dance teachers of that time and continued to go back every Summer for most of her adult life. Mrs. Beard also helped her to open her first dance studio in Oak Hill, WV in 1952 – Gunter School of Dance which evolved into the MOVB Academy of Fine Arts today and has been in continuous operation for 73 years and continuing her legacy.
Her first job as a C & P telephone operator was where she met the only love of her life, George Arnold Gunter, Jr. Besides loving and caring for her four children, her main focus was her dance studio and her students and she guided thousands of children in their dance life for 68 years. She was a member of the Dance Educators of America, Professional Dance Teachers Association of America and appeared in an issue of Who's Who of dance teachers. She achieved many notable accomplishments in her life. She presented the first Nutcracker Ballet Suite performance in the Beckley area in the mid 1950's that led to the annual full-length production of the ballet that is presented annually by the MOVB since 1981. When she settled her family in Parkersburg, she created the Gunter Dancers performing dance troupe in the 1970's which eventually became the semi-professional dance company, Parkersburg Civic Ballet in 1982. Always striving for more, she guided the PCBC into a professional dance company now known as the Mid-Ohio Valley Ballet Company . She was a driving force in the Arts in the Mid-Ohio Valley. Having created the first touring ballet company in West Virginia, she was honored by the area mayors in the 1980's as they proclaimed the ballet company the official area dance company.
She founded and created the Parkersburg South High School Southern Belles Drill Team. She created the SOS campaign – "Save our Smoot" when the theater was in danger of demolition. She guided the MOVB as they acquired the Nash Public School building also saving it from demolition and it now is one of the only remaining historic school buildings in the area. She loved being at the studio and spent most of her time there where she created the "School Days Performing Arts Series" that still takes specially produced, mini-versions of the current ballets to area schools so that public, private and home-schooled children can have the opportunity to see a live ballet. She along with the MOVB was the original sponsor and founding organization of the "McKinley After-School Program" that won a federal department of Education drug free schools award and prestigious placement in the DC Library of Congress. -And so much more. Her legacy will continue to live on through the many children she taught that grew up to have wonderful careers in the Arts.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Joy Gunnoe Dick and Fred Greene Dick and her siblings that she loved so very much: Robert Donald Dix, Kermit Denzil Dix, Alfreda Dane Dick, Arland David Dix, Wilma Dean (Dick) Fisher and Rosemary Darlene (Dick) Bosley.
She is survived by her four children, Joy Elizabeth Held (Chris Murnahan), Dr. Terry Donne Gunter, PhD.EDU (David Mosser), Georgia Anne( Miss Suzy) Gunter and her son George Arnold (Kip) Gunter III. And by her grandchildren Aurora Elizabeth Held- Dodd (Elliott Dodd), Kitri Sierra Held, Janetta Jean Gunter and her great grandchild Alden Dodd and several nieces and nephews.
The family wishes to thank Julie Dawson Henry for her loving care for our mother for so many years and to everyone who loved, prayed and supported us while our mother bravely fought through Parkinson's disease for 17 years.
She was an amazing mother and a driving force that will be forever missed. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Norma J. Gunter Memorial Scholarship Fund where we continue her life's work of teaching children her love of dance.
Graveside Services will be held Saturday, July 26th, 2025 at 1:00 pm at the Mt. Olivet Cemetery with Pastor Dennis Heater and Pastor Stacey Tritt officiating.
Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.LeavittFuneralHome.com.