Joseph Maurice "Morrie" Spang Jr.

Morrie was respected and loved by everyone and always generous with his time and ready to be of service when needed.

Born in Canandaigua, New York on July 31, 1940, to Elizabeth Mae and Joseph Spang, Morrie’s early childhood included many moves. Morrie’s father was in the ministry, which required changing pulpits every few years. As a result, Morrie attended many schools and often felt that he was always the “new kid.” He was very bright, a bit shy, but quick to learn how to make new friends easily. A voracious reader, Morrie always had a book in hand. He loved basketball and baseball and would be a passionate, lifelong, Ted Williams fan. Morrie graduated with honors from Haddon Heights High School in 1958, where he became the Concertmaster of their orchestra.

Following in the footsteps of his uncle, William French Spang, (PMC Class of 1939), Morrie enrolled in the Pennsylvania Military College in Chester, Pennsylvania, and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering in 1962. He was treasurer of his class, a member of the Theta Chi Fraternity, co-captain of the cross-country team, and a member of the Tau Beta Pi engineering honor society. PMC would be the beginning of cherished lifelong friendships with whom he maintained contact, right up to the day of his death.

After graduating from PMC, Morrie enrolled in the University of Delaware where he received a Master of Civil Engineering, with a concentration in Structural Engineering in 1966. It was during summer months working on the Chesapeake and Delaware Bridge, that he was able to buy his prized 1964 1/2 original Mustang. He met his wife, Mimi, in November of 1965, and they would be married in June of 1966.

While waiting for his military orders, Morrie worked at the National Bureau of Standards in Bethesda, Maryland.

In July of 1967, Morrie was assigned to the Engineer’s School at Fort Belvoir, Virginia where He spent over two years teaching recruits and senior officers all levels of concrete design. During this time, his daughter, Tracey, was born. Morrie went on to achieve the rank of Captain before entering the reserves in 1969. This would be the beginning of a long and productive engineering career.

Finishing his military duty, Morrie moved to Atlanta, undertook a Ph.D. program at Georgia Tech, taught undergraduate structural engineering courses, and took great delight in being the last at Tech to teach the slide rule! His second daughter, Blake, was born in 1971.

In 1973, Morrie joined John Portman and Associates as a Structural Engineer. Commuting between Atlanta and Detroit over a four-year period, Morrie focused specifically on the design and construction of Detroit’s Renaissance Center.

In 1977, Morrie joined Heery and Heery, Inc. where he undertook projects such as Greenville Memorial Hospital, Miami Heart Institute, East Alabama Medical Center, and many others. He also designed the structures for the first upper decks at UGA’s Stanford Stadium and Alabama’s Bryant-Denny Stadium; 999 Peachtree Office Tower and many other offices, warehouses, and manufacturing facilities. While still at Heery, Morrie worked with the Harold Washington Library project in Chicago where he was actively involved in the planning, developing the Engineering and Architecture design requirements, and serving on the selection jury, which later became a PBS documentary.

In 1989, A. Epstein and Sons International, Inc. – an old established Chicago architecture and engineering firm – hired Morrie. He continued to lead the design team through the Harold Washington Library’s construction. Following the library completion, he became the Project Manager for an extension to McCormick Convention Center, in addition to other projects while in Chicago.

In 1995, along with three partners in Chicago, a new company, SPACE, was formed. It would concentrate primarily on communications companies and Lucent. Returning to Atlanta a few years later, Morrie opened a second SPACE office and worked with Coca-Cola, the pharmaceutical division of DuPont, Verizon Wireless, and many large call centers. Morrie would remain at SPACE which was later acquired by Nelson until he “retired” in 2020. In retirement, he continued a twenty-year role as the president of the homeowner’s association of his condominium complex.

In addition to working, Morrie loved spending time with his family. He loved traveling with Mimi, beach trips with the entire family, and truly relished his role as “Poppy” to his granddaughters, Olivia and Adelaide.

There are so many “Morrie” stories to tell… stories about his dedication to the Episcopal Church especially, his many and varied roles over the years, from Lay Reader, Eucharistic Minister, the Education for Ministry program through Sewanee, Senior Warden, Search Committees, Organ Committees, Treasurer of the Atlanta Diocese, Building and Grounds, and many more. Morrie would always find a church shortly after every move and quickly become involved. Four were dear to his heart; Saint Alban’s in Washington, DC, Saint Bede’s in Atlanta, Saint Chrysostom’s in Chicago and All Saints’ Atlanta.

Morrie always made friends everywhere he went, but he was especially close to his PMC classmates. To this day, they would talk often with each other, tell new stories, and retell the old ones. For the past 10 to 15 years or more, the group has met in Ocean City, Maryland, for a weekend of catching up, honoring the cadets who are no longer with them, and making plans for the next reunion. He found being class president the last couple of years was truly one of the great joys and honors of his life. It will be difficult not to listen for his iconic “DOINK!” reverberating throughout the day. Up to the very end, he laughed, joked, enjoyed his Heineken, told stories, and always thought about his classmates.

It would be impossible to remember everyone in Morrie’s life, but two very special and dear friends must be included; Robert Hawley, with whom, from their very first day at PMC in 1959, formed a bond of friendship that has survived for eight decades; and Duane Dunlap, who had joined Heery and Heery two months prior to Morrie’s arrival, was truly like a brother.

Morrie is survived by his wife of 59 years, Adelaide Waller Spang; his daughters, Tracey Hudson, and Blake Kozlowski (Robert); two granddaughters, Olivia Burgess (Austin) and Adelaide Hudson; two brothers, William Spang (Barbara), and Jeffrey Spang (Janet). Morrie’s third brother, Laurence Spang, died in 2023 but is survived by his husband, Richard Alegre.

A memorial service will be held at 11:00 am, on September 29, 2025, at All Saints’ Episcopal Church, 634 West Peachtree Street, NW, Atlanta, 30308. A reception will be held following the service. The service will be live streamed for those who are not able to attend in person.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Morrie’s memory to The Pennsylvania Military College Museum at Widener University, One University Place, Chester, Pennsylvania 19013 or All Saints’ Episcopal Church, 634 West Peachtree Street, Northwest, Atlanta, Georgia 30308.