Joe (Arthur) Morse:
CLASS OF 1956
Benton Harbor High SchoolClass of 1956
Benton harbor, MI
City Colleges of ChicagoClass of 1978
Chicago, IL
University of Puerto RicoClass of 1964
Mayaguez,
Benton Harbor Junior High SchoolClass of 1953
Benton harbor, MI
Columbus Elementary SchoolClass of 1950
Benton harbor, MI
Joe (Arthur)'s Story
Life
I left Benton Harbor the day after graduation for Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., which was home until 1983. I worked with my dad at an awning manufacturing and installation company for about a year. I joined the Air Force in 1957 and retired in 1983. I was stationed at Lackland AFB, San Antonio, Texas (1957); Keesler AFB, Biloxi, Mississippi (1957-1958); MacDill AFB, Tampa, Florida (1958-1959); Bunker Hill AFB, Peru, Indiana (1959-1963); Ramey AFB, Aguadilla, Puerto Rico (1963-1966); Westover AFB, Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts (1966-1968 and 1968-1970); Chanute AFB, Rantoul, Illinois (1968); Altus AFB, Altus, Oklahoma (1970-1976); Moody AFB, Valdosta, Georgia (1976-1977); Bitburg AB, Bitburg, Germany (1977-1982) and George AFB, Victorville, California (1982-1983). I married the girl of my dreams and best friend (and who passed away very unexpectedly in February 2002), the former April Upham, from Niles, in 1964. I have three children, Tad, born in Pureto Rico in 1965, Michael, born in Massachusetts in 1968 and Tara, born in Oklahoma in 1970. I settled in Cerritos, California after leaving the A.F. I've worked for Hughes [and then McDonnell Douglas (and now Boeing)] Helicopters as a Project Engineer in Culver City, Calif. from 1983 to 1984, Hughes Aircraft Co. (now a division of Raytheon) in Los Angeles, Calif. from 1984 to 1992 as a Support Engineer, First Air, Inc. (a small simulator company - now bankrupt...Expand for more
- NOT my fault, honestly) as a Simulator Technician in Santa Monica, Calif. from 1992 to 1994, McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) Services Company as a Simulator Technician in Khamis Mushayat, Saudi Arabia, from 1994 to 1996, FlightSafety Services, Inc. as a Simulator Maintenance Supervisor/Technician at Travis AFB, Calif. and Altus AFB, Okla. from 1996 to 1997 and as a Simulator Support Engineer at FlightSafety International in Long Beach, Calif. from 1997 to 2007, when I retired-this time for good, I hope. I purchased a 40 foot Motorhome and, as soon as my house in Cerritos sells, I will move into my Motorhome and become a 'GI Gypsy' while traveling through all the US states and Canadian Provinces that I can drive to, stopping when I want to, staying as long (or short) as I want to and moving on when I want to. No schedule, just an itinerary, except to be back here in California for my granddaughter's wedding in July 2008. I have a lot of friends and relatives that I plan to visit as well as lots and lots of State, Provincial and National Parks. All the while I'm traveling, I'll also be looking for a place to call home. There are only 49 other states beside California that are in the running, although I do hope to find a spot with low taxes and warm temperatures. Growing up in Michigan gave me the opportunity to learn that, if I never have to be outside in the snow again, it will be more than OK with me.
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