Posted on 08/08/2019
Captain Donald A. Morton, CEC, U.S. Navy (Ret.) died on July 30, 2019 at the Virginia Hospital Center. He was 88 years of age.
Captain Morton, the son of a Naval Officer, was born on August 12, 1930 in Honolulu, Hawaii. He was at Pearl Harbor when it was bombed by the Japanese on December 7, 1941.
He graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1954 and served in destroyers before transferring to the Navy Civil Engineer Corps, where he worked in facilities planning, design, construction, and maintenance. His duty stations included San Diego, Midway Island, Boston, the Naval Academy where he was the Planning and Engineering Officer planning the modernization and expansion of the Academy, the Naval War College where he was a student, staff and faculty member and Assistant to the President for Development Programs, and in Congressional Relations for the Secretary of the Navy in the Pentagon. He served two tours with the Naval Construction Forces (Seabees) in Vietnam.
After retiring from the Navy in 1984, Captain Morton worked for TRW on Naval weapons systems procurement; for System Planning Corporation developing maintenance systems for the NASA research centers, and as a private consultant. He worked as a volunteer for civic organizations in McLean for several years.
In addition to the Naval Academy, Captain Morton held degrees from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Boston College, and the Naval War College. He was a registered professional engineer.
In retirement, Don enjoyed backpacking, skiing, biking, and water sports at the family beach house on the Chesapeake Bay.
Captain Morton is survived by his wife of 63 years Joan Frances of their home in McLean, by a son Matthew David and his wife Deborah Ann of Ashburn, Virginia, a granddaughter Kathleen Elizabeth, a grandson Michael Selwyn and granddaughters Abigail Marie and Emilie Grace.
Interment at Arlington National Cemetery at a later date.
Published in The Washington Post on Aug. 8, 2019