Howard Lynn Morton

1936 - 2023

A memorial service will be held for Howard Lynn Morton at 10:30 a.m. Saturday March 25 at Faith Baptist Church in Artesia. He passed away peacefully March 15, 2023, at home with his wife, daughter, and son-in-law by his side.
Howard was born August 25, 1936, in Big Spring, TX His family moved to Tucumcari, NM when he was in the 3rd grade. He graduated from Tucumcari High School and went on to study Engineering at Texas Tech University and The University of New Mexico. He returned home to Tucumcari to farm and ranch.
In 1959, he married the woman he would spend the next 63 years with, Rosalie Kemp. They had a daughter, Dana, and a son, Bryan.
Back surgeries forced him to give up farming and ranching, and in 1975 the family moved to Carlsbad, NM to put in their first steakhouse. The steakhouse business later moved them to Temple, TX in 1977, The Woodlands area in Houston, TX in 1985, and finally Artesia, NM where he would call home.
1992 brought Howard to Artesia with his wife and son. There he was blessed with two very special grandchildren and a great granddaughter. He was known as "Granddaddy" to many.
Howard loved to travel. When his kids were young, they spent summers in a pick-up camper exploring the 48 states. He later traveled to worldly places with his wife. When grandkids came along, they were in tow on countless destination vacations.
He was preceded in death by his parents, two sisters, and son Bryan.
Survivors include his wife Rosalie; daughter, Dana and Son-in-law Steven Pruitt. Also surviving are the grandchildren he adored - Dr. Skylor Morton of Nashville, TN and Taylor Morton Lofgren of Artesia, NM; and the recent light of his life, great-granddaughter Landry Rhea Lofgren.
He is also survived by bonus grandchildren Kaylyn Sanchez, husband Jorge, son Marcus and daughter Emmy of Las Cruces, NM and Stevie Pruitt and Jo Carrillo of Savannah, GA.
The family gives special thanks to all the loving caregivers God blessed us with.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to:
Victory LIfe Fellowship
602 N. 10th St.
Artesia, NM 88210
American Kidney Fund KidneyFund.org