Chuck Norris is an actor, martial artist, film producer, and screenwriter best known for his work in “Walker, Texas Ranger” and approximately 20 action films. In his long life, he’s accomplished a lot, from starring in an internationally acclaimed series to developing his martial art style.

But, despite his previous success in Hollywood, Chuck has had his fair share of setbacks. His wife, Gena O’Russell, and his mother, Wilma Norris, are two of the women in his life who have supported him.

Chuck and his wife will celebrate their 22nd wedding anniversary in November 2020, and he shared a touching Instagram post about it. In it, he referred to himself as “the luckiest man in the world when Gena and I married,” before adding:

“Happy Anniversary, my lovely wife! There are no words to express how much I love and appreciate you; thank you for sharing your life with me, and I thank God for every day we are together.”

The 82-year-old actor is also fortunate to have the support of his amazing mother, who will turn 101 in May 2022.

Wilma has not only lived a long and eventful life, but she also raised Chuck and his two brothers after her husband left early in their marriage. The family also faced other family challenges, but they persevered.

Chuck had previously discussed his mother’s influence and even revealed in 2020 that when he was lost in Hollywood, she prayed for him to find a wife and make it through, and both of those things happened. Let us investigate.

Chuck has never shied away from discussing his family’s difficult circumstances. He once revealed that Wilma began to struggle at the age of eight. She was diagnosed with a rare disease at the time, which sent her to a children’s hospital for two years without seeing her family.

Because her family was impoverished, when she recovered at ten, she had to go out and work to support her family during the Great Depression. Instead of attending school like other children her age, she worked odd jobs, such as picking cotton in rural Wilson, Oklahoma, where her family lived. Chuck explained in an interview with WorldNetDaily in 2020:

“When done picking one field, they’d often move to another town to pick another field. Life in the Dust Bowl was anything but easy, especially during the Great Depression’s decade.”

Wilma met and married Chuck’s father before having Chuck at the age of 18. She had two more sons before Ray Dee, Chuck’s father, abandoned the family, leaving her to raise her sons on her own.

However, the struggle that nearly cost Chuck and Wilma their lives is also the struggle that has forever bonded them — his birth. In an article written to coincide with his 80th birthday in 2020, Chuck revealed that he was born after seven days of labor, coming out “bluish-purple from prolonged oxygen deprivation,” and that both he and his mother “almost didn’t make it.”

Chuck wrote the following in his article:

“For the first five days of my life, doctors and others were unsure if I would survive. Mom still has a letter from my grandmother to my aunt from that same week, in which she says, “Wilma’s baby is probably not going to live.” But we surprised them all! “

And they surprised the world, as Chuck stated in an interview with the Christian Post:

“Mom has always been a model of perseverance and faith. She has also lost two husbands, a stepson, two grandchildren, and my younger brother Wieland in the Vietnam War. She’s had cancer several times and had roughly 30 different surgeries for various issues — and she’s still alive to tell the tale.”

Furthermore, Chuck credits his mother’s prayer with assisting him in overcoming personal challenges. He went on to say:

“Throughout my life, my mother has prayed for me through thick and thin. Complications nearly killed me when I was born. She was back home praying for my success and salvation when I was on the verge of losing my soul to Hollywood a few decades ago. She prayed for me to meet a woman who would change my life, and it worked.”

Chuck and Wilma have a special bond, and they’ve always supported each other through thick and thin. The actor considers himself extremely fortunate to have not only his beloved centenarian mother but also the love and support of the other most important woman in his life, his wife.

Wilma celebrated her 101st birthday in May 2022 — what an accomplishment! To commemorate the occasion and pay tribute to one of the most important women in his life, Chuck posted a photo of her with the caption:

“Mom, happy birthday!” 101 YEARS OLD! WOW! There are no words to express how much I adore and value you. Thank you for everything you’ve done for us over the years that God has blessed us together.”

Wilma has had an incredible life and has not slowed down. In 2011, she published “Acts of Kindness, My Story,” a memoir about her life that detailed her upbringing and how she raised her sons. In 2012, while promoting the book, she spoke with Mike Huckabee about family and faith, as well as the “secrets” she used as a mother to raise her sons into standup men. She started to Huckabee:

“I kept them in church Sunday school, I taught Sunday school, and we prayed all the time; spiritual life was and still is very important to me.”

Huckabee asked Wilma what advice she would give to a young mother about child rearing, and these were her wise words:

“I would say to them: love them a lot, but also teach them, take them to church and Sunday school.”

Wilma then became emotional. “But see, God didn’t give us our children; he just loaned them to us for a while, and I will see mine, you know, soon. I’m not sure how soon,” she laughed. Wilma is “stronger than most of us,” Huckabee laughed. With her 101st birthday behind her and her sights set on her 102nd in May 2023, there’s no denying Wilma is one incredible lady.

Did you know Chuck Norris’ mother, Wilma Norris, has had a difficult life? Or the fact that she prayed for him to get through his difficulties? If this has inspired you, please share it with others so they can learn about it.