April 25, 2008

Rev. Maureen J. Morris Dies

Parish Associate and longtime member of

Woods Memorial Presbyterian Church

Rev. Maureen J. Morris, a Parish Associate and longtime member of Woods Memorial Presbyterian Church, died Tuesday after suffering an apparent heart attack at her Severna Park home. She was 58 years old.

Services for Rev. Morris will be held 2pm Wednesday at Woods Memorial Presbyterian Church, 611 Baltimore Annapolis Boulevard. Details about the service remain incomplete.

As the church’s Parish Associate, Rev. Morris established a caring relationship with the Sunrise Senior Living Community located near the church. She regularly volunteered as a ministerial liaison, visiting residents and occasionally offering the 3pm worship service. “She was a wonderful person. The residents absolutely loved her,” said Sunrise’s activity director.

Rev. Morris was an active member of Woods Memorial Presbyterian Church – even, as a youth growing up in Severna Park. She graduated from Severna Park High School and studied at several colleges before entering a seminary in Kentucky. While living in the mid-west, Rev. Morris worked on the pastoral staff of two churches and served as a minister in the Blackhawk Presbytery in Oregon, Illinois.

In 1995, Rev. Morris and her adopted son, Jeremy, returned to Severna Park. As a minister of the Presbytery of Baltimore, she was called as an Interim Associate Pastor to Woods Memorial Presbyterian Church – serving several years in that capacity before requesting an appointment as the church’s Parish Associate.

During her leisure, Rev. Morris collected theme music and enjoyed community theater, arts and crafts. However, most recently, Rev. Morris was on sabbatical from her ministry to pursue studies as a physician’s assistant at Anne Arundel Community College. With her death occurring a few weeks before graduation, the college plans to posthumously award her an Associate’s Degree.

Rev. Morris is survived by her son, Jeremy; and, two young nieces, Helen and Kathleen Overman, all of Severna Park, MD.