Edgar Morris III

1954 - 2025

Edgar A. (Alan) Morris III, age 70, passed away peacefully on November 6, 2025 surrounded by his beloved wife Karen and their son Taylor. He was a devoted and loving husband, father, and brother, and a loyal friend to many.
Alan was born in Texarkana, Arkansas on December 21, 1954 to Betty and Jerry Morris. The family brought him home Christmas Eve to the delight of his sister Angie as she had wished for a baby brother for Christmas. Throughout his life, Alan and his sister shared a strong sibling bond and the entire family was very close-knit and loving.
The family relocated to Austin, Texas in 1956. Alan grew up in South Austin near Barton Springs. After graduation from Crockett High School, he was accepted into the freshman class at the University of Texas at Austin. In 1979, he earned his degree of Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of Texas. As an upperclassman, he developed a passion for Marine Biology and upon graduation he began employment with the UT Marine Science Institute in Port Aransas, Texas. There he enjoyed the intellectual challenge of performing research while working on large ships as well as the camaraderie of his fellow professionals. Ultimately, he took his skills to the private sector where he worked in microbiology, geothermal energy exploration, and consulting services related to the detection, monitoring, and mitigation of microbiologically influenced corrosion. He authored and co-authored many research papers on these subjects during this time as well. In geothermal energy exploration, he had many adventures traveling and working in Canada, South America, Japan, and the Middle East. He enjoyed sharing stories of all these adventures with family and friends. In 2015, after twenty years of dedicated service, Alan retired from the Texas Department of State Health Services Division for Regulatory Services in the position of enforcement director.
In 1987, Alan met Karen, the love of his life, and they celebrated their 35th wedding anniversary this year. Alan and Karen's hearts' were filled with joy when their son Taylor was born in 1993, and their family was completed. He and his young son were members of the YMCA Indian Guides (now known as Adventure Guides). They enjoyed many fun-filled camping and fishing trips in Texas state parks, and were always joined by Alan's own father, Jerry. As a family, they enjoyed many vacations together especially in Colorado.
Throughout his entire life, Alan loved the great outdoors and the Highland lakes. During his high school and college years, he had many adventurous camping trips with his close friends. As a young man, he enjoyed riding his motorcycle on the winding Texas Hill Country roads up to Lake Travis. He enjoyed camping, boating, skiing, and fishing on the Highland Lakes especially Lake Travis with his family. He cared about the health and preservation of lakes and rivers. It was especially fulfilling when he assisted his son on many school science projects focusing on Lake Travis water quality. For many years, he was a member of the Texas Antique Outboard Motor Club and enjoyed working on many boats and outboard motors with his own father Jerry, and his son Taylor.
Alan was a self taught woodworker and a master craftsman. For over thirty years, he made all types of custom furniture such as dressers, bookcases, cabinets, doors, children's toys, custom toolboxes, shadowboxes and other ornate carpentry. He and his son Taylor made a good team and worked on many woodworking projects together. In the last few years, he was able to realize his dream of building a lake cabin on Lake Travis. Alongside his wife and son, he loved working on this property, watching the deer and foxes, and enjoying his Sea Ray boat. He loved all kinds of music and listened to music everyday while he worked on various projects. For the last several years, he enjoyed the Austin Classical Guitar season performances with his wife Karen. He was an avid reader of fiction and nonfiction, and enjoyed listening to the daily financial news. In the recent years, he began expressing himself through writing, joined some writing groups, and wrote short stories about his life experiences and friends. He was always learning something new.
Alan was so loved by his family and friends. He brought light into the lives of so many people and will be dearly missed. Alan is survived by his wife Karen Morris; son Taylor Morris; sister Angie Morris; sister-in-law Cheryl Schoeneman and her husband David; sister-in-law Rhonda Senkel; Aunt Jane Burr; Uncle Quintus Morris and his wife Geraldine; and beloved nieces and cousins. He is predeceased by his father E.A. (Jerry) Morris, Jr.; mother Elizabeth (Betty) Morris; father-in-law Gilbert Senkel; and mother-in-law Angie Senkel.
A visitation will be held at Weed-Corley-Fish Funeral Homes and Cremation Services, located at 5416 Parkcrest Drive, Austin, TX 78731, on December 7, 2025, from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. The funeral service will take place at St John's United Methodist, 2140 Allandale Rd, Austin, TX 78756, on December 8, 2025, from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. followed by a reception. A committal service will follow at Austin Memorial Park Cemetery, 2800 Hancock Dr, Austin, TX 78731, on December 8, 2025, from 1:30 p.m. to 2:00 p.m.
To honor his memory, please consider donations to conservation organizations protecting the great outdoors and the Highland Lakes, Austin PBS, or Austin Classical Guitar to support their programs.