Richard Lee Morgan (11 February 1935) was born in Nephi, Utah to Clark and Marjorie Morgan. He was the second of four children, a brother JC, a sister MarJean, and an afterthought brother, Kirk. Dad lived in Nephi throughout his youth and teenage years. He fished, hunted, ran wild with friends and cousins, worked at his dad’s grocery store, and even outran an angry neighborhood mom. After school, Dad signed up for the U.S. Army where he drove tanks in Bad Kissingen Germany. Two years later with an honorable discharge he surprised his family by hitchhiking home without telling them he was coming.

Dad’s next adventure was college. He attended Utah State University to study wildlife biology. While at USU he met his wife (Marti), loaded his boots up with small creamer cups and swaggered out of restaurants, played wild pranks with friends, and even joined the square dance club. However, he didn’t want anyone to know he was in the square dance club, so he told everyone his name was Ron Hones. He is in the USU yearbook as Ron Hones. Dad’s college summers were filled with adventure. He worked one summer in Yellowstone and three summers in Alaska.

Dad and Mom started their married life in Dillingham, Alaska, a small town only accessible by prop plane. Dad spent his days counting fish and having crazy encounters with wildlife. They stayed in Dillingham for 18 months and then moved to Montana. When they left Alaska, they had two little girls; Kelly and Kathleen and a walrus tusk which Dad gave to Mom for their first wedding anniversary. Karen and Kristen were both born and joined the family while in Montana. They then took off to Oregon where Reba, the last of their five girls was born. There were two more moves; Arizona and New Mexico before they retired to Utah. Dad was an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. He bour his testimony by the way he lived and by the way he carried out his various church callings. Dad and Mom were sealed in the Manti Temple.

Dad always loved hunting and fishing. He had many adventures with both activities. Highlights include coming face-to-face with a five-foot rattlesnake; falling through the ice while ice fishing not once, but twice; a once-in-a-lifetime buffalo hunt; fly-fishing up Nephi river and catching over 30 fish in one fishing trip (the number went up every time he told this story); hiding behind a horse to sneak up on an elk to take a picture; killing a rattlesnake in a campground while we all watched; using dynamite to harvest fish and then taking the fish to a restaurant and asking them to cook the fish (which the restaurant then sold as the day’s special); and taking a bobcat for a joyride.

Dad worked for the U.S. Government Department of the Interior as a fish and wildlife biologist for his entire career. He loved being outdoors and working with nature. His true outdoor love was Yellowstone National Park. He and mom honeymooned there where dad fished, and mom walked along the shore in the rain. After retirement they spent 14 years working and living in Yellowstone from March – October. During those years they traveled to Yuma, Arizona in the winter months to recruit snowbirds to work with them in Yellowstone. Even after they quit working in Yellowstone it was still an annual trip.

Dad loved spending time with his girls, his hunting dogs, and especially with his 11 grandchildren. Favorite grandpa time activities included hunting, camping, fishing, excursions to Yellowstone, sledding (grandpa pulling grandkids around in a sled), introducing the California grandsons to ice fishing, camping at Palisades, going to the Ute Stampede, the dinosaur museum in Vernal, yard work with two and three year-olds, hiking, walks up the canyon, teaching about nature, collecting soda tabs, dumpster diving looking for recyclable cans, making a bird house hotel, playing card games, grandpa out-hiking Rusty on hunting trips up Log Canyon, watching the Onion Days Parade, and getting locked out of cars together.

In his later years, Dad enjoyed taking long walks through Payson, collecting metal to recycle, drinking Pepsi, eating frosted oatmeal cookies, and picking up garbage in Centennial Park. Dad lived a life of quiet service. His example lives on in the lives of his children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. We inherited his spirit of adventure, his sense of humor, his zest for life, his wild ways, and his love of country and family. He is preceded in death by his parents; Clark and Marjorie Morgan, a brother; JC, his sister; MarJean, and two daughters; Kelly Morgan and Karen Morgan. He is survived by his wife; Marti Morgan, three daughters Kathleen Schramm (Rod), Kristen Morgan, and Reba Morgan, 11 grandchildren and 11 great grandchildren.

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