Indiana Man at 90: Insurance Agent, Crossing Guard

Norman Horrar has a full-time job, which at 90 years old is impressive in its own right.

But Norm, as his friends call him, is an agent with Callaway Insurance. He also works part time as a crossing guard for the city of Bloomington on one of the busiest streets in town.

He works the Second Street crossing in front of Binford Elementary School, and he isn’t afraid to shake his fist at drivers who blow through his intersection as he holds up his stop sign. “I have been known to dress people down pretty severely,” he said. “And I don’t apologize for that.”

“I know you’ve got a cellphone … keep it in your pocket,” he told The Herald-Times. “No, eat your breakfast at home. … Don’t worry about it, fix your hair when you get there.”

“People need to be aware of these school districts,” he said. “They come through here at 45 miles an hour, and it’s scary. They just ignore you out there.”

“It’s not me,” he said. “I’ve got little people here. They don’t know that they’re in battle with a two-ton car.”

Horrar has been a crossing guard for nearly two years, and he and the kids have an arrangement. “You don’t step off of that curb until I’m in the middle of that street and I tell you to come across it.”

So, why is it at 90 years old he takes on such a hazardous job?

“I particularly enjoy the youngsters,” he said. “You know, in the ugly world of today, it’s kind of nice to be exposed to innocence.”

“They’re bright, they’re happy,” he said. “And of course, I’m very fond of children. My own and everybody else’s.”

Horrar has been working jobs like this his whole life, jobs that help him give back to the community.

“I was out at Area 10 (Agency on Aging) for 12 years,” he said. “I went out there as a VISTA worker. I set up an employment program (Job Links) for people 55 and older.”

“From that, I operated the employment program at the Shalom Center, over at Martha’s House … I worked with all the nonprofits.”

“I was raised that way,” he said. “When I was 12 years old, I was going with my mother to take food and clothes and everything else to people.”

“It’s just kind of something I grew up with,” he said. “Ingrained, I guess.”

“In my lifetime I’ve always had what I consider two jobs,” he said. “I’ve had a job to make a living and I’ve had a job to contribute, where it didn’t necessarily pay anything, but maybe it made a difference.”

“I say that people should be useful,” Horrar said. “And so this is something that I can do … it’s rewarding in that you get that return. These people appreciate what you do.”

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