Jay Dee Muir

As a child, he moved with his family to the Southern California coast. He attended and graduated from Laguna Beach High School where he met his future wife Mary, who he would marry in 1953. Jay also enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1953 and served on a destroyer during the Korean War until he was discharged in January 1955, just one day before his son was to be born.

He moved with his family to Lake Arrowhead shortly after welcoming a daughter in 1956.

He explored different career paths from managing a trout pond, to working for a tree service, to working at the South Shore boat house (where he appeared as a boat driver in the movie, Seven Days in May) before finding his true calling as a Freelance Carpenter, specializing in remodels. Jay’s reputation for his innovative and creative ideas would one day precede him. He would leave the mountains to move back to the coast after he and Mary divorced. He continued to improve his craft as a skilled carpenter and helped many homeowners create their dream homes.

Jay enjoyed helping others and was known for helping neighbors and friends with simple repairs. He was the senior member of his neighborhood, having lived in the same house for 47 years and was respectfully referred to as “Mr. Jay” by the children and adults alike.

Jay loved animals and would take in a wide variety of strays and rescued senior pets that no one else wanted. He even spent a couple of years helping to protect the local Monarch Butterfly population, planting milkweed and keeping predators away from the cocoons. He loved working in his yard and keeping busy.

Jay was extremely proud of his military service and in the last 15 years of his life almost always had on his Korean War Veteran cap. He enjoyed attending several reunions with crew members from his same ship.

He loved the ocean and the California coast and would drive down to Dana Point harbor to watch the boats come and go most evenings.

Jay insisted on living independently until complications due to a rapid decline from Alzheimer’s made that no longer possible.

Jay passed away in the early morning hours of January 17, 2022 at his son’s home in San Marcos. He was 88.

Jay is survived by his son, Laine Muir, daughter, Laurie Harp(David), 4 grandchildren, Elise Dean(Jon), Rylee White(Bjorn), Weston Muir (Kymmie), Michael Harp, and 3 great grandchildren, Adelaide, Sequoia and Everest White. He is also survived by two brothers, an extensive family of cousins, nieces and nephews and some very dear friends referred to as his “chosen” family.

Jay’s ashes will be interred at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery on Thursday May 5, 2022 at 10:30 a.m.

In lieu of flowers, please make a donation in Jay’s name to the Alzheimer’s Association.

https://act.alz.org/site/Donation2?df_id=32112&32112.donation=form1&utm_source=google&utm_medium=paidsearch&utm_campaign=google_giving&s_src=giving&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIpMqs66We9gIVHAutBh1kmwCoEAAYASAAEgL9UPD_BwE