Neil Morse

Loving And Devoted Husband, Father,

And Friend

Neil Morse, 62, of Newtown, died April 27, following a short but courageous fight against cancer. He passed away surrounded by those who loved him dearly. He was born in Queens, N.Y., March 5, 1950, son of Diane and Martin Morse.

He grew up in Queens and Binghamton, N.Y., before he and his family moved to Monticello, N.Y. There he met his high school sweetheart, life partner, and beloved wife, Susan (Zank) Morse. They married after college in June 1972 and moved to Newtown in 1974, where they have resided ever since.

Mr Morse is also survived by his son, Joshua Paul, and his wife Alexandra; his daughter, Jessica Gerrish, and her husband Philip; sister Janet Newberg, and her husband Marvin; sister Stephanie Schmolze, and her husband Glenn; brother Richard Morse, and his wife Audrey; “brother” Richard Feiglin; his mother-in-law, Ann Zank; one adored grandson; and many loving nephews and nieces.

He was a man who embraced life with passion and joy. He was an avid biker and hiker, hiking the Appalachian Trail in the White Mountains every year with friends for the past seven years. His biking excursions included day trips to Block Island via ferry to bike the entire island in an afternoon. He was a fervent Yankee fan who loved watching the games on television and in person. He enjoyed music, traveling, lively controversial discussions, teaching, sushi, and the daily jumble. But more than anything else, Mr Morse loved spending time with family.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Bridgeport and a master’s in communications from Fairfield University, where he also was an adjunct faculty member for several years. He taught, he said, “as a labor of love for the return joy of sharing a passion that has driven most of my career choices over the years.” He was a successful communications and public relations expert who in 2000 founded Morse Communications, an editorial and marketing communications firm that served the US housing finance industry. Before that, he was executive editor with a mortgage publication company, served as a public relations professional for several firms, and worked as a reporter for The Connecticut Post. Mr Morse was an active writer for industry publications and was a frequent conference participant, speaking at and attending some two-dozen industry events a year. He commented on mortgage industry trends with wit and insight on a blog at http://morsecommunications.blogspot.com.

As a man of faith and tradition, Mr Morse was a member of Congregation Adath Israel for more than 30 years, four of which he spent as president of the congregation. For the past few years he was the Adath Israel liaison for the Jewish Federation of Danbury.

Services for Mr Morse took place April 29.

Donations to honor him can be made to the Adath Israel Education Fund, PO Box 623, Newtown CT 06470 or the Alzheimer’s Association of America at www.alz.org.

The Newtown Bee        May 4, 2012