Richard Morton

RICHARD "JOE" MORTON

Cedar Rapids

Richard A. "Joe" Morton, 87, of Iowa Falls, fomerly of Mount Vernon and Meth-Wick Manor in Cedar Rapids, died Saturday, Feb. 28, 2015, in Iowa Falls. A public celebration of Joe's life will be from 2 to 6 p.m. Saturday, June 6, in the Campanile Room, Iowa State University Memorial Union, Ames.

Born in 1927 in Council Bluffs, Iowa, to Ethel and Jay Morton, Joe embraced family, friends, athletics, reading and much more. He played on Waverly, Iowa's 1944 high school state basketball championship team. He excelled at golf as an adult. After high school, Joe enlisted in the U.S. Navy and did 21 months of stateside duty before enrolling at Cornell College in Mount Vernon, graduating in 1950 with a degree in economics and business administration. At Cornell, friends nicknamed him "Jellyroll" because of his fondness for jazz music.

In 1952, Joe married fellow Waverly High School graduate and Iowa State College home economics alumna Patricia Jean Koch. They went to Ithaca, N.Y., where Joe earned a degree in hotel management from Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration. Seven more moves and six children later, the family had settled in Ames, where Joe started work as executive secretary of the ISU Foundation in 1967.

Over the next 19 years at Iowa State, Joe's leadership and efforts in fundraising were instrumental in the construction of the Iowa State Center, Jack Trice Stadium, the Parks Library addition, the Durham Center for Computation and numerous other development projects. Endowments and scholarships were also part of his fundraising legacy. He found the work of higher education development very fulfilling. Joe retired in 1986 as director of development.

As a father and grandfather, Joe championed education, lifelong learning and a strong work ethic. Joe also traveled extensively with Pat, with groups of ISU alumni and with friends and family. He helped numerous Ames organizations and Cornell College with volunteer activities and fundraising savvy. He had a strong sense of social justice and compassion for persons less fortunate than himself.

Widowed in 1995, Joe married Joy Litts Gaarde of Mount Vernon, Iowa, and Paradise Valley, Ariz., in 1996. Joe and Joy divided their time between the two states, enjoyed friends and family and traveled widely. Joe returned to Iowa permanently in 2011 when illness necessitated additional nursing care, and to be centrally located to his children.

Joe is survived by his second wife, Joy Gaarde Morton of Paradise Valley, Ariz.; children, Marian (Keith) Kuper of Ackley, Andrew (Ana) Morton of Alexandria, Va., Laura (Tom Moldenhauer) Morton of West St. Paul, Minn., Joel Morton of Cambridge, Mass., Carol Neuhoff of Madison, Wis., and Marc Morton of Englewood, Colo.; and five grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his parents and his first wife.

Joe was a gentleman of great integrity, quick wit, enthusiasm, compassion and adventurousness.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Cornell College or Hospice of North Iowa.

Please visit www.iowacremation.com for additional details.