"Well done, thou good and faithful servant…enter thou into the joy of thy lord." (KJV Matt 25:21)

Mr. James Eugene (Gene) Morris, age 87, died quietly and gently just as he lived his life on September 23, 2024.  He entered the Kingdom of Heaven embraced in the love of his family and his wife, Linda, of 61 years.  No two people shared a love as devoted and enduring to each other as did Linda and Gene, and they are the truest role models for marriage, love and parenting.

Gene was born into humble, farming beginnings to Jim and Loise Morris in Seymour, Texas on October 30, 1936.  Riding his tractor and fascinated with God's beauty in the clouds & skies, Gene developed a life-long curiosity for weather and science, and he was drawn to meteorology at a young age.

A quiet man with an impeccable mind, Gene graduated from Seymour High School in 1955.  He attended the University of Texas at Austin, Texas Tech University, and earned a bachelor of science in meteorology from Florida State University (Tallahassee) in 1959.  He also completed graduate work in meteorology at FSU and, in physics and water resources engineering at the University of Texas at El Paso.  In 1961, Gene Morris met Linda Weems in Odessa, Texas when he took his first job with the National Weather Service as a meteorological observer/forecaster.  They were married in 1963 and after three years with the NWS, Gene and Linda moved to El Paso, Texas where he began his over 30 year career at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico.

Mr. Morris' career at White Sands began with the Missile Meteorology Division of the Signal Missile Support Agency where he researched stratospheric and mesospheric circulation and conducted unique experiments from Panama to Alaska and Greenland.  He rapidly moved from a staff meteorologist position to increasingly responsible positions, culminating as Technical Director of the U.S. Army Atmospheric Sciences Laboratory for 11 years when he retired in 1993.  In this role, Mr. Morris was responsible for technical programs spanning the atmospheric sciences from basic and applied research to development of sensors and meteorological equipment in support of Army activities across North America.  Highlights of Mr. Morris' career were when he served as U.S. Principal Delegate and Chairman of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Panel XII for Meteorology and again, later, when he was the Army Lead for Environmental Sciences BAST/STAR Study.  For distinguished service to his Nation, Mr. Morris was awarded the Commander's Award for Civilian Service (today, the Department of the Army Civilian Service Commendation Medal).

Following retirement, Gene and Linda moved to Hattiesburg, Mississippi to be close to Linda's family.  They became members of First Presbyterian Church of Hattiesburg while Gene took up golf and enjoyed working in his beautiful yard.  He served on the board (and founding member) of Senior Quest Men's Club, and the board of Family YMCA.  A man of profound faith and love of the Lord, Gene read his Bible each morning, long before most people were awake.  He will forever be remembered for the many stories he shared in his favorite role as G-Dad, grandfather to 7 grandchildren, whom he adored.

Mr. Morris was preceded in death by his parents James O. and Loise Morris, and infant daughter Crystal.  Mr. Morris is survived by his loving wife of 61 years, Linda (nee: Weems); three children, Leigh Anne (Girard), Pamela (Rodney), and James III (Kathleen); and seven grandchildren, Laura, Deborah, Elizabeth, Garrett, Joseph, Austin, and John Russell.  Additionally, Mr. Morris is survived by his older sister Ruth Anne Crenshaw and the extended Crenshaw family of El Paso, Texas.

The family would like to express their gratitude to the staff and physicians at Asbury Hospice House and Lamar Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center for the kind and compassionate care they provided Mr. Morris the final months of his life.

Mr. Morris will be laid to rest in Seymour, Texas.  Donations to honor Mr. Morris may be made to Reformed University Fellowship (RUF) at the University of Southern Mississippi (www.givetoruf.org/donate/southernmiss) or French Camp Academy, One Fine Place, French Camp, MS 39745 (www.frenchcamp.org).