A visitation will follow the service in the Coltrane Memorial Room. Norman was a faithful member of Central's congregation for 70 years.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be sent to the Norman and Elizabeth Bisanar Fund, Central United Methodist Church, 30 Union Street N, Concord, NC 28025. All the money donated will be distributed to local charities.

Born July 30, 1907 in Hickory, NC, Mr. Bisanar was the son of Katharine and George E. Bisanar, the latter of whom founded Bisanar Jewelers in downtown Hickory which still is in business. Norman Bisanar attended and graduated from Georgia Tech University with a degree in Engineering and until his passing was the longest consecutive donor to that school.

He married Elizabeth Snyder in 1931 in one of the most newsworthy social events of the year in Charlotte in large part because it was a dual wedding at the Meyers Park Methodist Church that also involved Elizabeth’s identical twin sister, Virginia. Norman and Elizabeth then honeymooned in Cuba.  In 1940, Mr. Bisanar was asked to move from Hickory to Concord to oversee the Coca-Cola Bottling Company’s local operation and did so until his retirement in 1977. In one newspaper article he was dubbed “The Coke King of Cabarrus County.”

During World War II he served in the U.S. Navy working in Washington, D.C. Soon after the war ended it was he, along with a small group of citizens, who formed the Concord Chamber of Commerce. He was originally its vice-president, then became its president a year later.

Mr. Bisanar always took a strong interest in the Concord’s community, serving on the Board of Directors for the Concord National Bank, Concord Light and Water and Concord Bank organizations. He attended the Central United Methodist Church in Concord and gave generously to the church as well as numerous charities.

Norman always loved to travel and especially loved to fish in the Florida Keys. He also built a home in Blowing Rock overlooking the Chetola Resort, a home that has provided a number of generations of Bisanar children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren tremendous joy. Taken as a whole, Norman Bisanar was a dedicated husband, father and grandfather, a humble, decent and caring man, a successful business man and one who always made everyone feel welcome.

Norman Bisanar is survived by his daughter Katharine Bisanar Holding and her children Katharine (Lee) Holding Dunlap, Robert Pace Holding, and Margaret Holding Barrett. He also had a daughter, the late Caroline Bisanar Pate