Alicia Morton Obituary

On Wednesday evening, February 10, 2021, Alicia Morton, dancer, art historian, teacher, poet, and loving wife, mother, grandmother, and sister, passed away peacefully at the age of 82 at her home in Amherst, Massachusetts, with her loving husband Thomas Throck Morton and her son, David Reckford, by her side. She lived a full life, with a contagious passion for art and dance, a deep love and hope for humanity and the planet, and joy and dedication to her family.

Born May 24, 1938, in New York City, the youngest of three sisters, to Florence Reynolds Decker and Robert Merrill Decker, Alicia graduated from The Brearley School and went on to study at Barnard College, and nearly two decades later, graduated from Smith College.

She was a dancer and teacher her entire life, continuing to teach dance classes and perform publicly into her 80s, even while living with stage four breast cancer for over twenty years.

Alicia first encountered the Martha Graham tradition of modern dance during her senior year of high school. Years later, after moving to Coconut Grove, Florida with her then-husband Philip Reckford and three young children, she joined a local dance company, and later formed her own company, Aurora Dance.

After her divorce in 1979, she moved to Massachusetts, enrolling in Smith College and completing a degree in Art History. In Massachusetts, she fell in love with and married Thomas Throck Morton, an artist, musician, and teacher who shared her passion for art and inspired her with his own music and painting. Alicia and Tom raised Joe and Lucas, his two children from a previous marriage, and Jordan, her youngest son from her first marriage.

Alicia's passion for the transformative power of dance inspired her to produce live performances nearly every year for the rest of her life.

Until the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Alicia continued to teach dance and exercise classes several days a week at the Amherst Senior Center, bringing her love of dance and movement to hundreds of devoted students over a period of nearly fifty years. In more recent years, she also taught art history and art in film, both in community spaces such as The Amherst Senior Center, and as an Adjunct Professor at Westfield State College.

From a young age, Alicia was conscious about environmental devastation and the threat of climate change and she rejected prejudice and discrimination in all its forms. Her life reflected her values, guided by generosity and kindness, and concern about her impact on the earth. She avoided excess waste and energy inefficiency, took part in protests and a weekly peace vigil, wrote letters to politicians and newspapers, and made her concerts into benefits for local community groups.

When she visited her son, Jordan, in New Orleans in the years after Hurricane Katrina, she taught free classes for community members, and did benefits for organizations involved in rebuilding the city. She also volunteered with The New Orleans Museum of Art, and contributed to a book on the art in their sculpture garden.

Alicia was dedicated to her children and stepchildren: Stephen Reckford (Jack Linehan) of Potomac, MD; David Reckford (Laurence) of Rueil-Malmaison, France; Laura Reckford (Brian Tarcy) of Falmouth, MA; Joe Morton of Greenfield, MA; Lucas Morton (Christi) of Greenfield, MA; and Jordan Flaherty of New Orleans, LA; and her grandchildren, Simon and Mathilda Reckford, Stevie, Jack, and Janet Linehan-Reckford, and Isaac Morton. She is also survived by her sister Florence Hardin (Laureston) of Portland, OR, and her children, Alicia and Linda.

One of her favorite poems was by Emily Dickinson, and she recited it by heart days before she passed:

Behind Me-dips Eternity- Before Me-Immortality- Myself-the Term between- Death but the Drift of Eastern Gray, Dissolving into Dawn away, Before the West begin-

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to a favorite charity. A Celebration of Alicia's Life took place on Saturday, February 13, with hopes that a larger gathering can be arranged in the coming months.

To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.

Published by Amherst Bulletin from Feb. 24 to Feb. 25, 2021.

Memories and Condolences
for Alicia Morton

6 Entries

Colette Nadeau

February 23, 2024

I appreciate receiving the reminders from Legacy. I think of Alicia often, driving on Dickinson Street past the dance barn or past Emily Dickinson´s house on Main Street, or talking with other people about dance and movement or about people and things we miss as we get older and life changes very fast. Alicia had many qualities I would like to emulate of being patient and kind and also vital and energetic and interested in addressing very important things. These ways are critical in this day and age.

Colette Nadeau

February 24, 2023

Memories of Alicia pop up at different times of the year, when I run into someone from the class, and in different places. In Spring when salamanders cross under the road in the man made tunnels on Northeast Street I remember she choreographed a dance about the spotted salamanders that we filmed outdoor at Hampshire College when she was teaching in North Amherst in the old elementary school building. She also taught classes at the Munson library in South Amherst when some other dance studio wasn´t available. Dancing with her at Bangs community center or the Nacul Center was OK but the Barn Studio was where the long-term relationships seemed to develop. I know she also taught in Northampton but regrettably I missed that. One special time she invited our class to have tea at her house which was sort of magical. I appreciate the opportunity to write down these memories to share.

Ali de Groot

February 18, 2023

Alicia´s spirit is with me every time I dance. I learned so much from her about grace, patience, and aging. I went back to the Barn Studio last month for the first time since she stopped teaching our movement class there in Dec. 2019. It was like walking into an old friend. Her essence is in those floorboards and walls and mirrors. I miss Alicia so very much.

Colette Nadeau

May 31, 2022

Alicia was a wonderful dance teacher and I learned so much in her classes in Modern Dance from the late1980's on and in her exercise classes right up until COVID19 stopped everything. She was always helpful and encouraging and this was so important to my well-being throughout those years. It was great to see the other students returning for session after session and I miss both Alicia and them so much. I am so blessed by having known her and to have met her family at classes and events.

Chloe Baumgarten

February 26, 2022

I feel so bad, I love Annie but she died 7 days before my birthday

Ali de Groot

February 28, 2021

Alicia was the most inspiring woman I’ve ever met. I’ve taken her dance classes since 1993 and it was like being in the presence of a goddess every single time. I love how when her grown children came to visit her in Amherst, they would join her class at the Barn Studio upon occasion. I loved all her benefit dance performances and especially her final one on her 80th birthday at the Nacul Center. I will deeply miss her.

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