Ernest Morris

Funeral Services at Hart-Wyatt Funeral Home Chapel, Walters, Saturday, December 5, 2020 at 2:00 p.m., Kevin McKinley officiating with interment in the Temple Cemetery, Temple, OK. Use of masks and social distancing are respectfully requested. 

Ernest Dwight Morris departed this life on December 2, 2020 in Duncan, OK. He was born April 10, 1935, 2 miles south and a half mile east of Temple, OK, the 3rd child of Joe Ernest Morris and Louise Knapp Morris. Upon the sudden death of Louise, the family moved into town and lived with Lyda Morris for 6 years until his father, Joe, remarried. Ernest attended school at Temple, graduating with the Class of 1953. He received a scholarship from Cameron College to play with the college band.

Ernest joined the US Navy, and while in training at San Diego he was assigned to the Recruit Drum and Bugle Corp. He was then assigned to the Aircraft Carrier USS Hornet as a radarman. He played 3rd base for the ship’s softball team. He was honorably discharged in January 1959.

Ernest worked for Sears in Lawton for a year before going to work for the US Postal Service. He worked as a clerk, letter carrier, promoted to Postal Operations Analyst, Director of Mail Processing and retired as Director of Field Operations in 1990.

On October 12 1959, he married Gale Glasgow in Temple and to this union two children were born. They made their home in Lawton until 1973 when they built a new home northeast of Walters. During these years, Ernest played softball for various teams and took the family to Lake Texoma to fish and water ski. He coached peewee football, served as president of the Walters Lakeside Golf Association, president of the Okla Excel Travel Club, was choir director and youth director at Sullivan Village United Methodist Church and PTA President. He enjoyed golfing, fishing, watching OU Women’s Basketball and doing family genealogy.

Ernest and Gale loved to travel and visited every state except Alaska, Maine, Minnesota and South Carolina. They spent many winters in South Texas meeting new friends and enjoying the warm weather. In 2010 they sold their acreage NE of Walters and moved to Marlow.

He is survived by his wife, Gale, of the home; a son, Mike Morris and wife Dana of Marlow; his daughter, Brenda Sides and husband Bobby of Walters; 6 grandchildren and spouses, Melissa Torres and Hector, Charity Cote and Chris, Samantha Burns and Luke, Casey Sides and Heather, John Morris and Myiul, Emilee Marney and Alex; 10 great grandchildren; a brother, Dwayne Morris and Karen of Norman; sisters, Patricia West and Jim of McLoud, and Barbara Strawn of Temple; and 38 nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his father and mother; a very special step mother, Ouida Dorset Morris; a sister, Kathryn Louise Bryant; and a brother, Bennie Joe Morris.