Morse, member of CAP Hall of Honor, passes

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(Left)
Col. Louisa Spruance Morse early in her CAP career, wearing the uniform that CAP officers wore from December 1944-Auguest 1951.

(Right)
In 2003 Col. Louisa Spruance Morse was presented with a plaque honoring her 60 years of service to CAP and her country when she was inducted into the Delaware Aviation Hall of Fame.  With her are (from left) then-cadets Robert L. Staton, Jerry A. Horn Jr. and Nicholas A. Horn and Brig. Gen. Richard L. Anderson, former Civil Air Patrol national commander.


NATIONAL HEADQUARTERS -- Col. Louisa Spruance Morse, one of Civil Air Patrol’s first and longest-serving female wing commanders, died Oct. 22 in Wilmington, Del. She was 96 years old.

One of only two women inducted into CAP’s Hall of Honor, Morse was active in the organization for more than 60 years, starting as a ground instructor in World War II and rising to serve as commander of the Delaware Wing for 23 years.

She was Delaware’s first -- and only -- female wing commander and also became the first woman to serve on CAP’s National Executive Committee when she was appointed commander of the Middle East Region. She also made major contributions as CAP’s national controller and as founder of the organization’s National Historical Committee.

“Louisa was irreplaceable and will be remembered for all time as a pioneering leader in America’s Air Force auxiliary,” said Brig. Gen. Richard L. Anderson, one of two CAP national commanders who served under her as a cadet.

Morse was a true trailblazer, breaking new ground throughout her lengthy CAP career.

During World War II she was a Red Cross first aid instructor in Wilmington. She studied to become an aviation ground instructor and became certified by the Civil Aeronautics Authority. She enlisted in CAP as a private in November 1942 and began teaching officers the basics of navigation, meteorology and civil air regulations, though she herself was not a pilot.

“I was not a pilot, but I’d done a lot of Red Cross instruction,” Morse said in an interview for the Civil Air Patrol Volunteer’s 65th anniversary issue. “In those days of the civilian pilot training corps, kids were given ground instruction before they went in the military to get a head start on flying.”

She read in the newspaper that CAP needed instructors, and she volunteered. “They did not have cadets when I went in, so I was teaching pilots,” she remembered. “

Though she had a staff sergeant rating because of her experience in civil aeronautics, she wouldn’t take the stripes until she could drill the troops. “So, I learned how to do it,” she said.

Morse progressed through the enlisted and officer ranks. Her staff assignments included instructor, squadron assistant training officer, wing assistant training officer, wing supply officer and wing fiscal officer.

In 1953 she was appointed Delaware Wing commander and served diligently until 1976. She was named Wing Commander of the Year for 1969 among CAP’s 52 state commanders before her appointment in 1976 to the National Executive Committee as Middle East Region commander.

She held that post for three years before becoming the national controller of CAP for the next three years. Before she relinquished the post in 1983, she was inducted into the CAP Hall of Honor in 1982.

Morse’s many decorations during her CAP career are legion. In addition to her induction into the Hall of Honor, she was awarded the wartime Courier Service Ribbon and the Distinguished Service Medal with four bronze clasps. She also was inducted into the Delaware Aviation Hall of Fame in 2003.

Despite the accolades, Morse was most proud that two of her cadets – Anderson and Brig. Gen. S. Hallack “Hal” du Pont Jr. -- became national commanders.

A recently retired U. S. Air Force colonel who now serves on CAP’s Board of Governors, Anderson said Morse influenced him for nearly 40 years.

“Col. Morse had a profound impact on my life,” he said. “She was one of the major reasons for my desire to remain in CAP as a senior member after my cadet years concluded.

“Simply put, I wanted to emulate her lifetime of service through CAP, which also played out in my decision to pursue an Air Force career.”

During his eight years as an Air Force colonel, on his service dress uniform Anderson wore the same eagles Morse gave him in 1986 for his CAP service dress uniform when he was appointed Nebraska Wing commander.

“They were the same eagles that she wore on her own CAP uniform, starting in 1953 and until her active service with CAP concluded,” he said. “That's the sort of impact that she had on my life, and I was privileged to remain in close contact with her until just one month before her passing.”

Anderson said Morse touched thousands of other lives through the CAP cadet program and was a major benefactor, through her generous financial contributions, of Aviation Leadership Scholarships awarded by the Spaatz Association to deserving CAP cadets.  

Morse’s years in CAP were a family affair. Her husband, Lt. Col. Albert W. Morse Jr., an Army reserve officer, became an active member of the Delaware Wing after they were married in 1947. Their son, William, was a cadet.

“When there would be a mission, we’d start from the house,” she recalled in her 2006 interview with the Volunteer. “I’d get on the radio or the phone, and we’d run things from the house until we’d reach people. We’d get the calls about 4 a.m., usually.”

Lt. Col. Morse, like his wife, advanced in a succession of CAP posts, including director of operations for the Delaware Wing. He died in 1979, the victim of a stroke.

Morse continued to serve in her later years, mainly through her work with the CAP National Historical Committee, which she founded.

As national historian, she compiled a book chronicling the history of CAP uniforms, insignia and ribbons, and another book recording corporate leadership.

She has also transcribed oral history interview tapes of many of CAP’s early members, including those who served in the Coastal Patrol during World War II.

Her reason for dedicating much of her life to Civil Air Patrol was explained in her 2006 interview. “I believe strongly in the missions of CAP,” Morse said, “and was glad to find an interesting and rewarding volunteer service.”

Spoken like the true public servant that she was.

Morse is survived by her two children, son William Spruance Morse of Daytona Beach, Fla., and daughter Alice Humphrey Morse II of Chester Springs, Pa., and two grandchildren, Lindsey and Matthew Morse of Washington, D.C.

Internment will be private. Her memorial service was scheduled for 2 p.m. Oct. 27 at Westminster Presbyterian Church, 1502 W. 13th St. in Wilmington.

 In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to: Delaware Wing, Civil Air Patrol, USAF Auxiliary, P.O. Box 11285, Wilmington, Del. 19850-1285.
Notes of sympathy can also be sent to the family in care of this address.