Joseph 'Jay' James Morrissey Iii

Jay Morrissey passed away peacefully on November 18th, 2024 surrounded by his family in Irvine, CA. Jay was dedicated to his wife, Evelyn, for 60 years.

Joseph James Morrissey III, was born in Chicago, IL. He was known by all as Jay. He had one sibling, his twin sister, Judy Morrissey. Jay and his family moved from Chicago to Whittier, CA where he grew up and graduated from California High School. He continued his education at CSULB and received his Master’s Degree at Pepperdine University. After completing college, he married Evelyn in 1964 and joined the United States Marines with the rank of Second Lieutenant where he served in the Vietnam War as a pilot flying photo reconnaissance missions.

Jay and Evelyn lived on many military bases all around the United States and made lifelong friends at every location, the longest was in Quantico, VA and El Toro, CA. Jay retired from the Marine Corps after 22 years of service at the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. His favorite deployment was always the Officer’s Club. The family settled in Irvine and he went to work in the private sector.

Jay was a loving husband to Evelyn, a devoted father to his three children, JJ Morrissey (Michelle), Patrick Morrissey (Regina) and Kelly Bajorek (Erik) and loved his five grandchildren. Grandpa was delighted to be their Uber driver and cheered them on at all their sporting and school events. Jay and Evelyn enjoyed their countless RV camping outings with family at Camp Pendleton in Oceanside, CA. Jay joined the Garden Grove Elks Lodge making new friends, helping out during the holiday events and being part of the Elk-Enders Camping group where they continued with more camping adventures. Jay will be remembered for his sense of humor, being a great friend and willingness to help out on any DIY project. Cherished husband, dad and grandpa – Jay will be missed.