Dr. Justin Roy Morris

Dr. Justin Roy Morris, Distinguished University Professor, age 77, of Springdale, Ark., died May 19, 2014. He was born Feb. 20, 1937, at his home near Nashville, Ark., in Howard County, the son of Roy and Leecie Morris. He is survived by his wife, the former Ruby Blackwood, to whom he was married 58 years; children, Linda Ramage and her husband, Phillip, of Nashville, Ark., and Mike Morris of Johnson, Ark.; grandchildren, Drew Gibbs and his wife, Katie Beth, of Springdale, Ark., and Page Brawley of Conway, Ark.; and four great-grandchildren, William and Taylor Noyes, and Bella and Christen Gibbs. He was preceded in death by his parents; and grandson, Chris Townsend. Dr. Morris was a 1954 graduate of Nashville High School. He went on to earn B.S. and M.S. degrees from the University of Arkansas and a Ph.D. degree from Rutgers University. Prior to his retirement in 2009, Dr. Morris was a Distinguished Professor in the Food Science Department and director of the Institute of Food Science and Engineering at the University of Arkansas, where he provided research, teaching, leadership and service to the grape and wine industries for over 40 years. He served as the executive vice president of Ozark Food Processors Association for over 30 years. He was a Fellow of the American Society of Horticultural Sciences and the Institute of Food Technologists, as well as a lifetime member of the American Society for Enology and Viticulture (ASEV) and ASEV-Eastern Section. He received the Joseph Harvey Gourley Award in Pomology in 1979. He received the ASEV Merit Award in 1996, the Food Industry's Forty-Niner's Service National Award in 1998, the Pioneer Award of Missouri Grape and Wine Industry in 1998, and the American Wine Society Award of Merit in 1999. He also received the Norman J. Childers Award for Distinguished Graduate Teaching 1983. In addition, he received numerous awards for his research and teaching at the University of Arkansas, including the Spitze Land-Grant University Award for Excellence in 1997 and the John W. White Outstanding Research Award in 1983. He was inducted as a Supreme Knight by the Order of Knights of the Vine in 2004, to the Arkansas Horticulture Hall for Fame in 2005 and to the Arkansas Agriculture Hall of Fame in 2009. Dr. Morris published over 410 research and trade articles, 30 book chapters and two books. Many of Dr. Morris' former students are actively working and serving the grape/wine and food processing industries. A private graveside service was held on Thursday, May 22, 2014, at Howard County, County Line Cemetery, near Nashville, Ark. A memorial service is scheduled for 2 p.m. Friday, June 6, 2014, at Trinity United Methodist Church in Fayetteville, Ark. The family has planned a gathering featuring a slide show from 1:30 until 2 p.m. prior to the start of the service. In lieu of flowers, the family requests contributions be made to the Ozark Food Processors Association - Justin R. Morris Scholarship (send to OFPA, 2650 N. Young Ave., Fayetteville, AR 72704); or the Food Science Department Justin Morris Endowed Scholarship (send to Food Science Department, 2650 N. Young Ave., Fayetteville, AR 72704). Funeral arrangements are under the direction of Nelson-Berna Funeral Home & Crematory, Fayetteville, Ark. To sign the online guest book, please visit www.nelsonberna.com.