A. Dale Morgan

Mr. A. Dale Morgan, 91, of Frederick passed away on Saturday, June 4, 2022, at his residence in the presence of his family.  For 71 years, he was the loving and devoted husband of Norma Morgan, who predeceased him.

Born and raised in Denver, Colorado, he was the son of the late Alan Leon Morgan and Eva Mae Van Gelder Morgan. He met the love of his life, Norma, upon her family’s move from Kansas when she was eight and he was 10. They were childhood neighbors, then dated as teens and were married in 1950.

Dale and Norma initially made their home in Denver and, briefly, in Oceanside, California while Dale was serving in the Marine Corps at Camp Pendleton.  Returning to Denver following his discharge, he initially joined his family’s contracting business, which he was intended to take over, before deciding to pursue a different path.  He and Norma ran a flower and gift shop during the day while Dale attended the University of Denver and worked in the Denver General Hospital pathology lab at night.

The latter led to his pursuing a career in hospital administration.  To this end, Dale earned his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Colorado in 1964 and his Master of Science in Medical and Hospital Administration in 1966 from the University of Pittsburg.  Following an internship in Chicago and an administration position in Detroit, Dale and his family spent the next 12 years in San Francisco, first at St. Joseph’s and then as President of Marshall Hale Memorial, where he led a ten-year project that replaced the originally 88-bed hospital with a new 215-bed facility.

While at Marshall Hale, Dale was president of both the San Francisco Hospital and the West Bay Hospital Conferences, Chairman of the Hospital Council of Northern California’s Board of Trustees, and a member of the Board of Trustees of the California Hospital Association, serving as its Chairman from 1978-80.  He was also a founding member and Chairman of the California Hospital Association Insurance Services.

After joining the Hospital Corporation of America, Dale took over administration of hospitals in Roseburg, Oregon, Jackson, Wyoming, and Franklin, Louisiana, upon their acquisition by HCA.  While in Franklin, he and Norma rode out Hurricane Katrina in the hospital Dale administered there.  In retirement, they lived in Lafayette, Louisiana, Albuquerque, New Mexico, and northern California before settling in Frederick in the home of their daughter and son-in-law, Susan and John Cunliffe.  Wherever they lived, Dale and Norma became an integral part of the community, especially that of their church, where Dale was invariably an enthusiastic member of the choir.

Dale also found time to actively support Norma in her passion for breeding and competitive showing of Bichons Frises.  Several of their dogs were breed national champions and one, Jean Paul (named after the pirate Jean Paul Lafitte), was the 1993 Nonsporting group winner at the prestigious Westminster Kennel Club dog show in New York.  Their last dog, Jeff, came East with them to Frederick.

Dale is survived by his daughter, Susan (John) Cunliffe; his son, Paul (Kay) Morgan; his grandchildren Brian (Jennifer) Edwards, William (Lara) Morgan, Andrew (Christina) Cunliffe, and Amy Morgan; and seven great-grandchildren.

A private service will be conducted prior to internment. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions in Dale’s name may be made to Frederick Memorial Hospital’s Hospice Endowment Fund .