Obituary of Morris Dean Hamby

Morris was born on July 25th 1933 as the second of four children born to Curtis and Ora Hamby of Muse, OK. He passed into eternity on November 30th 2015 in Gig Harbor Washington surrounded by family after enduring a ten year battle with dementia that took away the man we all knew. His early years were spent in rural Oklahoma where he enjoyed the company of his older brother Larry and he often recounted their adventures and escapades that would leave us both in stitches and awe. The stories had the ring of a Tom Sawyer, Huck Finn quality and were dear to his heart. In the early 40's the family moved to California where they lived in several places before settling in the Modesto area. It seems they attended so many schools that Morris and Larry banded together to fight off the local bullies and prove they were worthy of their presence in any given setting. Prior to leaving Oklahoma the family grew to include his only sister Barbara and younger brother Curtis was born in California. Morris attended high school in Modesto and had a relatively normal young life until he was 16. He happened to receive the telegram from the military while home alone that alerted the family that his older brother Larry had been engaged in a conflict in Korea and was "missing in action". Morris finished high school and enlisted in the Air Force before he was of legal age. By this time the Korean War was over and Morris spent most of his hitch as a flight engineer and airplane mechanic seeing duty in England, Europe and Africa. There have been stories passed down that if the crew were having a particularly grand time in any one location that a necessary part for the plane might take a couple of days to reach them before they could resume their assignment?? Guess who was responsible for ordering said part??? Being the young man that he was he fully enjoyed his Air Force days and his love of military aircraft and history stayed with him throughout his adult life. Volumes of books on World War II and airplanes could be found in the hook shelves of their home. When he returned from the Air Force he attended Modesto Junior College and worked to realize his goal of furthering his education by attending Fresno State College and obtaining his degree in business. It was at this transition that he met Roberta Azevedo and within a few months they were married and off to Fresno to begin their life together as "starving student and working wife". Before leaving Fresno their first boy Paul was born. Their next home would be in Sacramento where Morris worked for the state and they welcomed Dan into the family. It wasn't long before they were off to the bay area where Morris worked for Texaco and Bryan was born while they lived in Sunnyvale. Shortly after Bryan's arrival they got transferred back to Sacramento and they settled in Fair Oaks. These years were spent raising boys and all the activities that go along with that. They purchased a boat and enjoyed lots of camping trips with family and friends. Life was good there, but the couple were aspiring to have something of their own and with Morris's degree, his knowledge of the oil company business and Bobbie's accounting background they purchased a business franchise that would allow them to build something for their family and give them some independence in their financial future. This endeavor required that they move to Washington, leaving extended family and friends to pursue their future. There were several new homes built in the following years, requiring full landscaping and retaining walls both on the waterfront and other sites that Morris and Bobbie did all the work on themselves. He was extremely strong and fit, even up into his later years and continued to take daily walks and do 300 push ups into his late 70's. After more than 25 years working and building their business Morris retired and they settled into that new phase of retirement living. With this came a desire to hit the road and enjoy life doing some travelling and eventually doing so with an RV. Arizona became the favorite destination where they would spend the winter and enjoy a whole different life meeting and reuniting with friends yearly. Lifelong friendships were nurtured here and Morris seemed to be most content there in later years. Golf and side trips were plentiful for their group. They eventually sold their RV and purchased a small home in Arizona so that they could just fly down and back. With Morris' health in decline 2014 was the last spring they spent in Arizona. Upon returning to Gig Harbor it was evident that even simple tasks were becoming more difficult and after a fall in the early summer that injured his head things seemed to go downhill fast. It was obvious that Bobbie would not be able to care for him in the home as he was beginning to need more assistance than she would be able perform. He was moved into Harbor Heritage Adult Family Home care facility where he lived until his passing. He received compassionate loving care from the staff and eventually settled in. Morris is survived by his wife of 57 years and their three sons Paul (Mavis), Dan (Melaney) and Bryan (Valerie) all of the area. Also survived by sister Barbara O'Neal of Fresno, Ca and grandchildren Heather Salvini, Angela Livi, Alexa Hamby, Matthew Hamby, Shaina Fry, and Taylor Hamby. In addition there are six great-grandchildren. Also leaving brother-in law, sister-in-laws, nieces, nephews, and extended family. He was preceded in death by parents Curtis and Ora Hamby, brother Larry Hamby and brother Curtis Hamby. Services are as follows: Military services at Tahoma National Cemetery in Kent Wa at 10:30AM on Friday December 11th followed by a memorial celebration of life at the family church, Peninsula Baptist, at 1:00PM on Friday December 11th as well. (see addresses below) The family requests that in lieu of flowers you may make a contribution to "Wounded Warrior Project" in memory of Morris Hamby. Woundedwarriorproject.org. Tahoma National Cemetery-18600 SE 240th St., Kent, WA 98042 Peninsula Baptist Church-6127 38th Avenue NW, Gig Harbor, Wa 98335