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2013 SESSION


HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 712
Celebrating the life of Jean Miller Brundred Murray.

 

Agreed to by the House of Delegates, January 18, 2013
Agreed to by the Senate, January 24, 2013

 

WHEREAS, Jean Miller Brundred Murray, a vibrant woman who embraced many roles throughout her life as she raised her family, served her country, worked to protect the environment, and volunteered with numerous civic organizations in the Charlottesville area, died on May 19, 2012; and

WHEREAS, a native of Tulsa, Oklahoma, Jean “Bunny” Murray graduated from Chatham Hall and attended Vassar College and the University of Pittsburgh; and

WHEREAS, after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Bunny Murray volunteered with the American Red Cross and joined the first regiment of United States Navy Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Services; and

WHEREAS, in this pioneering role, Bunny Murray worked as a mechanic on plane engines and then as a personnel officer; she was promoted to lieutenant junior grade in Coronado, California, where she met a dashing naval officer, Jim Murray, whom she married in 1945; and

WHEREAS, after the war, the young couple relocated to the East Coast, welcoming five sons while they lived in New York City and Long Island, then moving to Earlysville, where they purchased their beloved Panorama Farms and added three more sons to their family; and

WHEREAS, a dynamic woman known for her boundless energy, Bunny Murray immersed herself in family and community affairs while also working on the family farm raising sheep and cattle; and

WHEREAS, Bunny Murray served on the boards of the Martha Jefferson House and Hospice of the Piedmont, as a member of the University of Virginia’s Human Investigation Committee, and as a volunteer with the American Red Cross, Meals on Wheels, and Trousdale Home for Boys; and

WHEREAS, a stalwart advocate for the preservation and protection of the environment, Bunny Murray provided strong leadership as a member of the Rivanna River Roundtable, on the board of the Piedmont Environmental Council, as president of the Albemarle Garden Club, and as conservation chair of the Garden Club of Virginia; and

WHEREAS, on the national level, Bunny Murray, as a member of the board of the Environmental Defense Fund and advisory trustee for the organization until the time of her passing, encouraged measures that would protect the nation’s and planet’s ecosystems, oceans, and climates; and

WHEREAS, Bunny Murray earned numerous awards and accolades throughout her life, receiving the Mighty Oak Award from the Virginia Conservation Network, the de Lacy Gray Conservation Medal from the Garden Club of Virginia, and, along with her husband, the Paul Goodloe McIntire Award from the Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce; and

WHEREAS, a woman of many interests and talents, Bunny Murray enjoyed painting, hiking, traveling the world, and cultivating her flower beds, but took the greatest pride in her beloved family; and

WHEREAS, predeceased by her son, Latham, Bunny Murray will be fondly remembered and greatly missed by her husband, the former Delegate James B. Murray; surviving children, James, Jr., Matthew, Christopher, Stephen, Andrew, Thomas, and Timothy, and their families; and numerous other family members, friends, and admirers; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby note with great sadness the loss of an extraordinary woman, ardent conservationist, and dedicated civic leader, Jean Miller Brundred Murray; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the family of Jean Miller Brundred Murray as an expression of the General Assembly’s respect for her memory.