Merry Morris' Obituary
Merry Morris, 64
Lakeland - Merry Morris was born on December 17, 1950 in Pawtucket, RI, to parents Robert and Hazel Brennan (both deceased). She was the oldest of five children, Jeanne Becker of Galesburg, IL; Daniel Brennan of Lakeland, FL; Nancy Ale of Silver Spring, MD; and David Brennan of Clarksburg, MD.
Merry met and married Daniel Johnson while working as a nurse in California and subsequently welcomed daughter Kara (Severit) of Lakeland in 1976, daughter Nicole (Peters) of Lakeland in 1978 and son Sean (Johnson) of Lakeland in 1982. After a divorce, she moved with her children to Florida in 1991. She remarried two more times, but was single at the time of her passing. She had 5 grandchildren that she enjoyed spending time with: Jordan Hollifield (20), Alanna Peters (8), Jase Severit (6), Mykah Johnson (3), and Brayden Johnson (deceased), all of Lakeland.
Merry obtained her A.S. in Nursing from Rhode Island Junior College in 1972 and immediately moved to California to pursue her nursing career. After marrying and moving to Idaho, she continued her education and graduated with her Masters in Nursing from Idaho State University in 1977. She worked in the nursing field for a total of 24 years, holding positions in the ICU, Delivery Room, Nursery, Home Health, and Administration. Her true passion, however, was her career in real estate, begun in the 1980’s in Ledyard, CT. After moving to Lakeland, FL in 1991 and working in the nursing field for several years, she returned to real estate in 1996. She worked for Century 21, Re/Max Paramount Properties, and Keller Williams until she retired in 2008. Upon her retirement, she volunteered as a nurse at Lakeland Volunteers in Medicine for several years.
Merry always had an adventurous spirit, and loved traveling with family and friends whenever possible. She visited Hawaii several times, most of the Caribbean islands, the Bahamas, Mexico, France, Scotland, Ireland, England, and Holland. She also made numerous trips within the continental US to places like Alaska, Washington, California, Louisiana, Illinois, and most of the eastern states. On her various trips, she liked to try anything-she rode horses, went kayaking and snorkeling, white water rafting, and even rode an airplane glider. She was a huge animal lover, and always had at least one dog to nurture, most recently her Black Lab/Rottweiler mix, Bucky (8), and loved to go take him to the park for walks.
Merry passed away at her home on April 10, 2015. She is survived by her siblings, children and four of her grandchildren. Her service will be held on Friday, April 17, 2015 at 1:00 PM at Gentry-Morrison Funeral Home at 3350 Mall Hill Rd., Lakeland, FL. The burial will take place in Serenity Gardens immediately following the service. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association at http://www.alz.org/join the cause donate.asp.
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