Robert Norden, who was named New York restaurateur of the year in 1984 and who later became a volunteer firefighter with the Warwick Fire Department, died Monday, Sept. 26, 2005, at the Arden Hill campus of Orange Regional Medical Center in Goshen. He was 65. Mr. Norden was born July 1, 1940, in Manhattan. Upon the death of his father, he left his engineering studies at Columbia University to assume the operation of Fraunces Tavern in New York City, the oldest existing tavern in America, which he continued to run for 41 years. He was the first civilian to receive the Coast Guard's "Distinguished Service Award" for his training of Coast Guard food personnel. In 1984, he was named Restaurateur of the Year by the Restaurant League of New York. Upon his retirement to Warwick in 1999, he told his wife that his proudest accomplishment was becoming a volunteer firefighter. Mr. Norden is survived by her wife, Ali Dabulis Norden; his daughter, Jacqueline Krueger; his son, Robert C. Norden; his grandchildren: Tierney, Charlotte, Malcolm, Liam and Sophia; his sister, Veronika Hughes; his cousin, Jule Tartaglia; his sisters-in-laws Joan Amato and Dorothy Bock; and his six nieces and two nephews.