Rempel served Fresno Pacific University as vice president and chief information officer and registrar, coming to the university in 1988. In 2006 because of his health Rempel took a part-time position as special projects administrator, working from his Fresno home. He resigned in 2009.
The memorial service is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Friday, October 21, in Butler Church, where Rempel attended, taught Sunday school and served as moderator. Anyone interested in being part of a volunteer choir for the memorial is invited to meet in the church choir room at 9:30 a.m. the day of the service.
Before coming to FPU, Rempel was at Grace University (NB) from 1972-1988, first as faculty member then as department chair. He earned bachelor's degrees from Grace and Wichita State University, master's from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and the University of Nebraska, Omaha, and a doctorate from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln.
President D. Merrill Ewert praised Rempel's special attention to detail, deep respect for process and the high value he placed on relationships. "In working closely with Norm over those years, I learned to appreciate his vision for the university, positive spirit and love for the institution," he said.
"Norm had a wonderful intellectual interest in his work; we often talked about what was going on in the world of higher education beyond his dual role of Registrar and CIO," Ewert added. "It was clear that he loved the Lord, his family, higher education and Fresno Pacific University."
Survivors include his wife, Elizabeth; daughter, Evie; and son, Ryan.