Morgan Samuel Harmison III

One of the last phrases he uttered was “I love God’s hugs”. Raised on a farm outside Berkley Springs, WVA, he moved to town to graduate from Berkley Springs High School where he played trumpet in the band. His musical talents served him well as he played in several dance bands throughout the ‘30’s in the D.C. area. Wanting to be a dentist, his father insisted on a business education, thus he graduated in accounting from Chillicothe Business College in Chillicothe, MO. Fate truly played a hand in this since it was in Chillicothe he met and married Jane Stepp on December 20, 1940. Sam always claimed he married intentionally on December 20th because it was the longest night of the year. The young couple celebrated their first anniversary with the birth of the first of two sons, Morgan S. the IV in 1941, and Marc Steven in 1946. Sam began his business career with Victor Products as a sales representation serving the east coast. Soon tiring of living out of a suitcase, he went to Firestone as an assistant manager in the chain of company owned stores. Rapidly gaining a reputation as a fixer, any time there was a store with problems, management, inventory control, sales performance, Sam and the family was on the move. From West Virginia to Eastland, Texas, then Electra, Quanah, Wellington, Paducah, Childress, Cisco, Lubbock, Abilene, Amarillo, Big Springs, Roscoe then finally on the way to El Paso with Western Auto, Sam said, “If they transfer us again, I’m quitting.” In 1955 when the call came to move to Albuquerque, New Mexico, Sam stayed in El Paso to work for American Furniture. At retirement age he and Jane opened the Plum Tree, a boutique gift shop which they relocated to the cottage shop area of Lake Charles in 1990. The shop was closed when Jane developed colon cancer. Sam lost his wife of 63 years in the summer of 2004.Sam Harmison loved people – loved his wife, his sons and his God. At the age of 100 he was baptized at the Enterprise Boulevard Church of Christ in Lake Charles. He told his daughter in law, Jo Harmison, “This is something I always wanted to do”.

Sam was preceded in death by his wife, Jane, his son, Steven, his sisters, Carol and Natalie, both of Berkley Springs. He is survived by his sister Ruth Ward of Charlestown, WVA and his son, Mike (Morgan the IV), of Lake Charles.

A brief memorial service will be held at Hixson Funeral Home on Ryan Street in Lakes Charles at 5:30pm on Tuesday, July 25th. No flowers, please. If you wish you may make a contribution in Sam’s name to the charity of your choice.