Richard Morgan

Lt. Col. Richard Hoyt Morgan, USAF (Ret.), 71, 10-year resident of Oak Harbor, died at Whidbey General Hospital on Veterans Day, Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2003, following a lengthy illness.

Dick was born in Muskogee, Okla., June 25, 1932, to James Hoyt Morgan and Lavonna Mary (Perryman) Morgan. As a small child he moved to Hollywood, Calif., where he acted in several movies. He returned intermittently to Oklahoma, where he was lead singer in his church choirs in Muskogee and Tulsa. Dick later moved to Vallejo, Calif., with his family and then to Oakland, where he graduated as class valedictorian in the Castlemont High School Class of 1950.

Following his graduation, Dick entered the Air Force’s Aviation Cadet program. After qualifying as a navigator-bombardier at Ellington Air Force Base near Houston, he served at Travis AFB, Calif.; Lincoln AFB, Neb.; McCoy AFB, Orlando, Fla.; Grand Forks AFB, N.D.; and Davis-Monthan AFB, Tucson, Ariz. During these tours he flew multiple aircraft including the RB-36, B-47, KC-97 and KC-135 and also served four years in the Minuteman missile program. In 1970 he cross-trained as an F-4 weapons system officer, followed by two combat tours in Southeast Asia with the 388th and 49th Tactical Fighter Wings.

Dick was later assigned at Hill AFB, Ogden, Utah, as the headquarters section commander for the 388th Tactical Fighter Wing and capped his Air Force career as deputy chief for maintenance for the 32nd Tactical Fighter Squadron at Soesterberg, The Netherlands. During this final tour the “Wolfhounds” took the prestigious Hughes Trophy as the Air Force’s premier fighter squadron two years in a row.

Following his retirement in 1981 he and his wife Dottie moved to St. Louis, where he was employed by McDonnell-Douglas as a maintenance supervisor. He then moved to Saudi Arabia where he directed F-15 maintenance operations and training for the Royal Saudi Air Force. Dick and Dottie moved to Whidbey Island in 1987, moved to Tucson, Ariz., in early 1993 and returned to Oak Harbor in the fall of 1996.

Dick’s life-long hobbies and interests included singing, acting, directing, reading and traveling. Not surprisingly, he was actively involved in Whidbey Playhouse and also taught history and drama at Skagit Valley College’s Whidbey Campus. Throughout their 50-year marriage, Dick and Dottie together created and directed multiple stage and variety presentations all over the world. He was a member of the Red River Valley Fighter Pilots Association; the Association of Air Force Missileers; the 8th Tactical Fighter Squadron Association and the 98th Air Refueling Squadron Association.

Lt. Col. Morgan is survived by his wife Dottie at home; two sons, Staff Sgt. Mark Morgan, USAF, of Issaquah and Lt. Cmdr. Richard “Rick” Morgan, USN, (Ret.) and wife Julie of Woodbridge, Va.,; one daughter, Cmdr. Chris A. Jenkins, USN (Ret.) and husband Randy of Crofton, Md.; six grandchildren, Katy and Scott Morgan; Marlyn and Caitlin Morgan (twins) and Bryan and Carli Jenkins; and brother William C. Morgan and wife Lydia of Bethel Island, Calif. He was preceded in death by his parents.

A graveside service will be Thursday, Nov. 20, at 1 p.m. at Tahoma National Cemetery, with full military honors under the auspices of McChord Air Force Base Honor Guard. Memorials may be made to Whidbey Playhouse, PO Box 571, Oak Harbor, WA 98277, or to Red River Valley Fighter Pilots Association Scholarship Program, PO Box 1916, Harrisonburg, VA 22801. Arrangements by Burley Funeral Chapel.