Thomas Edward Morris

Thomas Edward Morris lived a life of adventure. From his early days canoeing through the wilderness of Northern Minnesota at Camp Kooch-i-ching to his retirement years spent bushwacking abandoned public access trails on Maui, Tommy said ‘yes’ to any opportunity for mischief and exploration. He was inquisitive throughout his life, always eager to learn about his surroundings. When relaxing, he loved listening to classical music and playing cribbage.

Tommy was born in 1936 to Pat Morris and Jean Waddle in Evanston, Illinois and grew up in Kenilworth. The elder of his two sisters, he played football and wrestled during high school and went on to attend Rollins College and Northwestern University. His paper “Municipal Bond Ratings - Perspective, Evaluation, and Improvements'' won multiple awards. He and Roberta Marling married in 1958 and honeymooned in Cuba. After living in the Midwest, they sought warmer weather and moved to California. Tommy joined Goldman Sachs in Los Angeles in 1967 as a municipal bond trader. Tommy and Roberta had four sons, Patrick (Pat), Edward (Ned), Christopher (Chris), and Andrew (Drew).

Tommy was the epitome of the ‘work hard, play hard’ mentality, starting work at 4 a.m., when the markets opened on the East Coast and living it up the rest of the evening. In 1970, Tommy purchased the one-of-a-kind 1968 Marcos Mantis XP, a futuristic bug-eyed green race car built for Le Mans. The street-legal race car remains in the family, and Tommy was thrilled to take his last ride in it with Ned in 2021.

Tommy met Jeanne Grimes at a bond industry ski event, and married her in 1987. They had one son together, William (Brad). After 38 years at Goldman as an expert in municipal bonds, Tommy retired to Maui. He educated himself on the history, flora, and fauna of Hawaii. He delighted in an early morning paddle with Jeanne in their ocean kayak especially during whale season and made it a goal to paddle around the entire island in segments. He was no less venturesome on land, hiking with his buddies followed by beers and fresh poke every week. He volunteered hundreds of hours at the Hawaii Land Trust’s Waihee Coastal Dunes and Wetland Refuge pulling invasive weeds to protect the native plant species. He continued volunteering as long as he could, until progression of dementia and the global pandemic isolated him from the things he loved the most. He passed away peacefully on January 2, 2023.

Thomas is survived by his sister, Joan Young, and former spouse, Roberta, as well as sons Pat (Sandi) in Palm Springs, CA, Ned in Chico, CA, Chris (Toby) in Walnut Creek, CA, Drew (Sarah) in Lake Tahoe, NV, and Brad (Lauren) in Westcliffe, Colorado; grandchildren Robert, Jaye, Krista, Kaley, Fiona, Twyla, John, Elle, Austin, and Axel. Thomas was preceded by his wife, Jeanne Morris, and his sister, Patricia Foremaster. Mahalo to the staff at Springs Ranch Memory Care, Leila and Tania, staff at the Maui Country Club, and good friend Tom H. Donations in Tommy’s memory may be made to the Hawaii Land Trust (https://www.hilt.org/donate).

A celebration of life will be held June 22, 2023 on Maui. Access details and RSVP at tinyurl.com/TommyMaui