Rexford ‘Rex’ Morey

Retiree Rexford “Rex” Morey died Nov. 8 at his home in Pacific Grove. He was 69.

Morey retired from LLNL in 2005 after working for seven years in the Laser and Weapons programs.

After graduating from Northeastern University in Boston, Mass., with a masters degree in electrical engineering, he spent much of his adult life in New England.

His career in geophysics led him to travel to a number of spots around the world, including the Antarctic, the Alaskan and Canadian Arctic, the Greenland icefields and the North/South Korean demilitarized zone.

Morey received a patent in ground penetrating radar and was an original co-founder of Geological Survey Systems Inc., a Salem, N.H.-based company that still operates today as a leading manufacturer of ground penetrating radar equipment.

In retirement, Morey developed a love for photography. He was a member of the Independent Photographers, the Carmel Foundation Photography Group, the Photographic Society of America and, previously, the Livermore Camera Club. Morey’s primary inspiration for his landscape photography came from the beauty around him, such as his daily walks around the Monterey Peninsula and visits to Moss Landing, the Big Sur coast and the Old Mission San Juan Bautista.

Morey is survived by his wife, Norma Dunipace, the former manager of partnership development in the Lab’s Industrial Partnerships Office. Also surviving him are seven children: sons, Rex Morey of Durham, N.C.; and Shawn Morey of San Diego; and daughters, Rebecca Jordan of Amesbury, Mass.; Robin Morey of Morehead City, N. C.; Regan Morey of Newburyport, Mass; Niav Conner of Santa Barbara, Calif.; and Jessie More, of Washington, D.C. He also had three grandchildren, Sam, Noah and Beatrix Jordan of Amesbury, Mass.

A celebration of life service will be held on Dec. 5 at the Old Mission of San Juan Bautista, 406 Second St., San Juan Bautista, at 11 a.m. A reception will follow in the mission’s Casa Maria Parish Hall.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations in Morey’s honor be made to the Old Mission restoration fund. Burial will be held today (Nov. 13) in Bethel Cemetery, Polk County, Ore.