John Hite Morris

John (Jay) H. Morris, 83, of Ponte Vedra Beach, passed away on April 24, 2025. Jay was born in Pittsburgh, PA to John and Margaret Morris. He was one of four siblings. His family moved to Chatham, NJ in 1955 and he attended Chatham High School where he lettered in soccer, basketball and tennis. He and his wife were high school sweethearts.

Jay went to West Virginia University on a full soccer scholarship and was a member of the Sigma Nu fraternity. He joined ROTC and graduated with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Marketing. He later earned his MBA in Finance at the Weatherhead School of Management of Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, OH. Upon graduation from WVU, Jay reported to duty at Fort Eustis, VA and was transferred shortly after to Fort Rucker, AL to attend fixed-wing flight school. A year later, he was deployed to Phu Loi, Vietnam for a 13-month tour of duty. He flew a FAC plane (forward-air-control aka L19 or Bird Dog) responsible for calling in artillery. He was rotated out as Captain having earned The Bronze Star, The Distinguished Flying Cross, and 16 Air Medals. He served his country with great honor and valor.

On return home, Jay had successful careers with the Armstrong Cork Co. and General Tire. At 35, he joined a small NASDAQ company, RPM Inc. as the 3rd man in their management team. As Executive VP, they grew the company into a global, multi-million-dollar NYSE corporation. He served on RPM’s Board of Directors as well as the Board of Directors of Northeast Ohio’s Fifth Third Bank.

Jay and his wife, Susan, lived and raised their two boys in Hudson, Ohio for 26 years before retiring to Ponte Vedra Beach in 2000. There he served on The Plantation’s Board of Directors and Finance Committee. He also headed the Finance Committee of the United Methodist Church (now known as Ponte Vedra Church) and was responsible for locating the property on which their church now stands. Ten years after retirement, Jay had an epiphany and decided to run for County Commissioner of St. Johns County where he served two terms. June 20th would have been their 62nd anniversary.

Jay was always optimistic and saw the glass half full all the time. He believed in people’s abilities even more then they often did themselves. With all his successes, though, the one he was most proud of was his family who he adored. He loved supporting them in their careers, their sports and all other accomplishments.

Jay is survived by his loving wife, Susan H. Morris, his son, Scott (Leslie) of Ponte Vedra Beach, his son, Kirk (Melissa) of Dayton, OH, his sister, Margaret (Collins), and his brother, Richard. He is also survived by his 6 grandchildren: Logan, McKenzie, Aidan, Austin, Brody and Kate.

“A Celebration of Life” service will be held in his honor at Ponte Vedra Church, 76 S. Roscoe Blvd., Ponte Vedra Beach FL 32082 on Friday, June 13, at 11:00. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to “Tunnels to Towers” (T2T) for wounded soldiers and homeless vets or to Ponte Vedra Church.