Morris Lemuel Tawater

1931 - 2012

Morris Lemuel Tawater, 80, went home to be with his Lord and Savior Jesus, who is the Christ, while in hospice care at a local medical center in Fort Worth on Friday, March 30, 2012. He passed peacefully in his sleep. Service: 3 p.m. Monday in Laurel Land Memorial Chapel. Interment: Laurel Land Memorial Park of Fort Worth. Visitation: 5 to 7 p.m. Sunday at Laurel Land Funeral Home. Morris was born Dec. 4, 1931, in Richland to Arthur Jay Tawater Sr. and Minnie Ethel Murphy Tawater. He was a devoted and loving husband and father. He cherished each and every minute with his wife and children and believed that they were a gift from God. His greatest desire was for all of his children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, etc. to come to a saving faith in the Lord Jesus. He was a faithful member of Garden Acres Baptist Church for the last 10 years. He married Betty Sue Suringer on Feb. 7, 1958. They were together for 54 years and after all that time referred to her as "a priceless jewel, a rare treasure." Morris made his living as an aircraft toolmaker (templates). He worked for 35-plus years at LTV in Grand Prairie. He always thanked God to have been blessed with the opportunity to have worked with such wonderful and talented men. He was also a 32nd-degree Mason and belonged to the Tabernacle Lodge in Fort Worth. He was also a member of the Scottish Rite. He was very proud of his affiliation with them. Morris was preceded in death by his parents, Arthur Jay Tawater Sr. and Minnie Ethel Murphy Tawater; his brothers, Arthur Jay Tawater Jr. and James Robert Tawater; four sisters, Mary Evelyn Tawater, Ottie Doyle, Delia Wight and Edna Rosenau; and daughter, Jo Lynn Tawater. Survivors: Wife, Betty Sue Tawater; sons, Steven Morris Tawater and wife, Bobbie, David Dale Tawater, Tony Neal Tawater, and Timothy Noel Tawater; daughters, Angela Joy Walker and husband, Randy, and Paula Sue McCoy and husband, Brian; 17 grandchildren; 16 great-grandchildren (with one more due in May); sisters, Christine Budaus and husband, Gabe, Betty Saylors and husband, Larry, and Sandra Hawkins and husband, James; and numerous other family members and friends.