Community remembers Chuck Morgan who ‘lived his dream’ in Kirkland

The celebration of the life of Charles O. Morgan, or “Mr. Kirkland,” was filled with tears, stories and as he would have wanted it, laughter. The man himself proved that by getting the last laugh of the service at the Kirkland Performance Center on Friday. In a video recording made in 2002, Mr. Morgan was able to say his last goodbyes in a poetic way.

“I have lived my dream,” said Morgan in the grainy black and white footage. “All of you have been a part of that dream and I thank you all.”

After the screen went black and the crowd began to clap, he could be heard saying “I’ll be back.”

Mr. Morgan’s sense of humor, kindness and love for Kirkland was on display during the two-and-a-half hour service. Speakers ranged from family, friends and coworkers to city leaders, including Mayor James Lauinger.

“All of us have been fortunate to have known Chuck and we thank you for that friendship,” said Lauinger. “And tens of thousands of people who never met him thank him for making Kirkland a place that people want to live.”

Mr. Morgan’s impact on the city was aptly described by his friend G.G. Getz, as she compared the relationship to the seasonal movie “It’s a Wonderful Life.” In her address, Getz, wearing a furry white halo on her head, compared Morgan to the character George Bailey, herself to Bailey’s guardian angel, Clarence Odbody, and Kirkland to Bedford Falls. The connection was to illustrate just how different Kirkland would have been if Morgan never took part in the community.

“There would have never been an Evergreen Medical Center, Evergreen Point Floating Bridge, East Side Journal newspaper, Bellevue and Cascadia Community Colleges,” said Getz about the man she called her Northwest dad. “Kirkland would not have its managerial form of government. Houghton would still be its own city. There might not even be paved roads.”

“Like George Bailey, Chuck was the most loved person in Kirkland,” said Getz, as she rang a bell to signify Morgan earning his wings in heaven.

The Master of Ceremonies was former Kirkland Performance Center Executive Director Steve Larin.

“The KPC (Kirkland Performance Center) would not have happened if not for Chuck,” said Larin, looking out at the crowd in the 400-seat theater. “Sold out houses made him happy.”

Larin joked that he made one of his worst business decisions by giving Morgan a lifetime pass to the KPC: “Chuck attended over 300 performances since 2002.”

On stage was a photo of Morgan at his 98th birthday party wearing a red-feather boa. Other items were used to described Morgan’s personality and the fact that he loved “the limelight.” Friends used the items to tell stories about Morgan. One of the items was a small toy plane brought by Kirkland City Councilmember Bob Sternoff, who told a story of flying to Wenatchee, Wash., picking up Morgan and flying him back to Kirkland for his final birthday. Another item was a small old-style slot machine to signify when friends and family “kidnapped” Morgan, took him to Las Vegas for his birthday and would not tell him where they were going. The story culminated with Morgan telling an airport waitress “they’re kidnapping me.”

Morgan’s adventuresome side was on display as friend Terri Fletcher talked about taking him for a parasailing ride and described the drive to Tacoma, with Morgan behind the wheel of his Chevy, as scarier than the flight.

Morgan’s family told stories of an attentive, loving and ambitious man.

“He was so healthy, he was eating soy bacon before they invented the soy bean,” said grandson Brian Morgan, whose son was born on Morgan’s 90th birthday. “There was always homemade blackberry jam at grandpa’s house and I remember feeding the pigeons at Marina Park.”

“He never figured out the internet. His keyboard had an interface problem,” said Brian Morgan, pointing to an old typewriter at the front of the stage that his grandfather used instead.

Many speakers also articulated Morgan’s devotion to journalism and the East Side Journal, where he was a publisher.

But his son Doug Morgan’s memories were some of the most personal: “When I was in Vietnam my dad ran my letters in the paper. I didn’t know how much of a following I had until I got home and he was so proud that he could do that.”

Most speakers had something to say about Morgan’s lack of height, noting the step ladder on stage, and larger than life personality. The story that got the biggest laugh of the service came from long-time friend and collaborator on the KPC, Bill Woods, former Kirkland mayor. He told a story of when he was in a car in Ireland and the driver slammed on the brakes and asked Woods: “Did you see that? A leprechaun just ran in front of the car!” Woods remembered telling the driver that he heard leprechauns lived in the woods. The driver replied that leprechauns live in the city and keep watch over the city and keep elected officials in line.

“By God, Kirkland does have a leprechaun!” said Woods about Morgan.

He continued with another story of Morgan and a friend away on vacation. The friend was a store owner in Kirkland, who had brought an alarm clock on the vacation that would go off during the middle of the night. Morgan never said a word. Instead, Morgan played a practical joke on the friend by having someone place a gigantic “going out of business” banner in the friend’s storefront.

“Never make a leprechaun mad,” said Woods.

The service also included music and remembrances of Morgan’s many performances at the KPC.

One of the most poignant stories came from his son, Greg Morgan. He told the crowd about his father growing up on a farm in Michigan and wearing denim overalls. During the Depression the work was hard and times were tough for the family. Later on, when denim became more of a statement of fashion, his son realized that his father would never wear jeans. When he asked his father why, Morgan replied that it reminded him of a “time not to be enjoyed or even passed but a time to be endured.”

“After moving to Kirkland he told my mom ‘I will live here the rest of my life,’” said Greg Morgan, continuing on and noting his father’s involvement in the Kirkland Rotary. “ ‘Service above self’ that described my dad.”

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