Havasu veterans | Ted Morris: ‘Worked with a lot of fantastic people’

The veteran comes from a family whose military history dates back to the Civil War. Morris’ great-grandfather was on the side of the South while he was in Georgia. During World War II, Morris’ father served with the U.S. Army Air Corps.

When Morris enlisted during the Vietnam War, his brother was also serving in the U.S. Air Force at the same time. Adding to his family’s military history is Morris’ son who currently serves in the Air Force.

Back in July 1972, Morris made the choice to enlist into the U.S. Navy. At 17 years old, he found himself embarking on sea journeys that brought him to different parts of the world.

As a submarine auxiliaryman, Morris conducted his work on auxiliary equipment such as plumbing, hydraulics and air conditioning systems. During his time in the Navy, Morris held the rank of a chief.

“I served on what they call attack boats, the fast attacks,” Morris described. “The attack boats were kind of a John Wayne-style thing where they actually go out, seek out the enemy and trail other submarines.”

The first submarine Morris remembers serving on was the USS Shark that was initially homeported in Norfolk, Va. Eventually, his crew made their way up to Groton, Conn. where the submarine was reassigned. Morris spent five years on the USS Shark before going to Hawaii.

Once there, the veteran became part of the submarine staff for the Commander Submarine Force. Morris would go on to meet his wife during his three years stationed in Hawaii.

An interesting time for Morris came afterwards when he served on the USS Seawolf. Although the base is now closed, he was stationed for two years at Mare Island Naval Shipyard. Located near Vallejo, Calif., Morris remembers the submarine having to perform particular tasks.

“She and another boat were up there doing what they called ‘special projects’,” Morris continued. “They were modified to do some unique things.”

Moving on to his next station, Morris went to the USS Houston, which had been commissioned in Norfolk. The submarine was homeported out of San Diego and remained there due to it not being deployed.

Spending over a year on the USS Houston, Morris took part in the launching of tomahawk missiles before departing from the Navy shortly after.

“We did the first live launch of a tomahawk missile, so it submerged,” Morris added.

Leaving the Navy in 1984, Morris spent 12 years serving his country and aiding in the duties bestowed upon him. At the age of 30, the veteran found his timing to be appropriate since he had a young daughter at home.

The veteran shares that the deciding factor to leave the military was due to him wanting to watch his daughter grow up. Morris’ father-in-law offered him a part-time job delivering wholesale dairy products for his dairy distributorship. The position soon transitioned into a full-time job and Morris remained employed for close to two years.

While working for his wife’s father, Morris had an encounter one day with the California Highway Patrol. The veteran was stopped while out riding his Harley-Davidson. To his surprise, the incident turned into a new job opportunity for Morris.

The interaction Morris had with the officer resulted in no ticket being issued. This in turn led Morris to change his thinking about the career, considering it a “fun job” to have.

“I put in an application and it took me about a year and a half to go through the process,” Morris said. “I did that for 28 years.”

At the end of Morris’ career with the CHP, he retired as a lieutenant out of the South L.A. area office.

The one element that has carried over from Morris’ military and law enforcement careers has been the good-natured people he worked alongside. Whether serving on land or on sea, Morris found those he surrounded himself with to be positive influences.

“The CHP was similar (to the military) because I worked with a lot of fantastic people and that’s my fondest memory, the people,” Morris continued.

The veteran believes that serving in the Navy allowed him to grow as a person and as a leader. The exposure to differing cultures also helped Morris when he served with the CHP.

Morris attributes his military experience to teaching him how to be tolerant of others who may be different from him.

“You meet a lot of people, learn different things and learn different cultures,” Morris said. “I thoroughly enjoyed my time in the Navy and as a CHP.”