Class of 1959

Last Call


Robert Alan Petitt

Robert Alan Petitt,70, died on May 25, 2006. He entered the Naval Academy from Haddonfield, NJ after attending Lehigh University for one year. He was a member of the 4th Company.

After serving four years in the Navy as an S-2 pilot, he joined Grumman Aerospace Corporation on Long Island, working on the F-14 program.

His wife, Nicki, passed away one year before he died. He is survived by five children and ten grandchildren.


Rayburn Ross Smith

Rayburn Ross Smith, 71, of Plymouth, Michigan died on June 1, 2009. He was a graduate of Culver Military Academy, "55", and the United States Naval Academy, Class of 1959 as a member of the 3rd Company.

After serving in the Navy for four years, he resigned and then completed the MBA Program at Harvard Business School, "65.”

He is survived by one sister, Betsey, and many extended family members.

A private service was to be held at a later date.


Harry Eugene Morgan, Jr.

Harry Eugene Morgan, Jr., 71, passed away on 24 April, 2009 in Lake Forest, California after suffering a series of strokes. Gene was born in Phoenix, Arizona and was a member of the 19th Company at the Naval Academy.

Upon graduation he served in USS Flechteler. While posted at the NROTC Unit at the University of Colorado he met and married Rebecca Reiland of Santa Fe, New Mexico. He later served in several nuclear powered submarines operating out of Hawaii.

In 1970 he and his family settled in El Toro, California, where he worked for Southern California Edison as a nuclear engineer until retiring in 1993 as Vice President and Site Manager at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Plant.

Gene is survived by his beloved wife Becky, a son and a daughter, and three grandsons. He was buried at El Toro Memorial Park on 4 May, 2009.

Family and friends are encouraged to donate to the USNA Foundation Honor Chair Program in memory of Gene. Include the following memo on your check: "In memory of Gene Morgan-HC" Attn: Violette Wright, 291 Wood Road, Annapolis, MD 21402.