Margaret Bishop Murray

Mrs. Margaret Bishop Murray (Mrs. Dan O. Murray, Jr.), 89, of Summerville, SC passed away at The Presbyterian Home in Summerville on Dec. 17, 2015. Family and friends may call at James A. Dyal Funeral Home on Sunday, December 20, 2015 from 6 to 8 o’clock PM. Funeral services will be held on Monday, December 21, 2015 at 11 o’clock at Summerville Baptist Church, 417 Central Avenue, Summerville. Burial will follow at Summerville Cemetery, 700 Boone Hill Road, Summerville. She was born September 6, 1926 in her grandmother’s home, the same home in which her mother was born, in rural Hampton County, SC. She was the daughter of the late Charles Carl Bishop and Reba Barnes Bishop of Bamberg, SC. She is survived by her children and their spouses: Dan O. Murray III & Anne S. Murray of Wilmington, DE, Carl K. Murray & Judy Byron of Indianapolis, IN, Carol M. Fahrenthold & Gerald H. Fahrenthold of Westfield, NJ, and Michael B. Murray of Summerville, SC. She is also survived by 7 grandchildren: Meredith A. Murray of Philadelphia, PA, Melanie M. Browder of Charleston, SC, Michael H. Murray of Seattle, WA, John H. Murray of Salt Lake City, UT, Katie O’Keefe of Brooklyn, NY, Eric Fahrenthold of Boone, NC, and Daniel Fahrenthold of New York, NY. She is also survived by her brother, Dr. Carl Barnes Bishop and his family. She was always a very determined and achievement oriented person. Although she was born premature, weighing less than 3 lbs., and lost one eye to an infection at the age of 2 weeks, she never let obstacles keep her from success. She showed an early talent in music, and after graduating from Bamberg High School at the age of 16, she studied music at Columbia College, winning the Lachicotte Medal for excellence in piano and graduating with honors in 1947. In 1948 she met her future husband, Dan Murray, who asked her on their third date to marry him. She refused, insisting she did not know him well enough yet, but they eventually married on July 24th, 1949, the date of her parents’ 25th wedding anniversary. The couple resided in St. George, SC. Her first child, Danny, was born in 1952, and Carl was born in 1954. In 1956 Dan was given a two year assignment as the sole civilian consultant to the Admiral of the Turkish navy in Golçuk, Turkey. Dan left for Turkey only a few weeks later, and Margaret took care of all the tasks required so that she and the boys could follow Dan to Turkey shortly after. While in Turkey, they made many friends, especially Cmdr. Richard Gerlach and his wife Hazel. This friendship continued for the remainder of their lives. While living in Turkey, she won the Thanksgiving turkey shooting contest, despite many comments that she was not holding the shotgun properly. She later commented that her daddy had taught her how to shoot, and she did not need advice on how to hit the target. The family left Turkey in early 1958 so that Danny could start school in the US. On their way back they toured Europe, visiting Austria, Germany, England, and The Netherlands. The family sailed back to the US on a passenger liner sailing out of Rotterdam. On their return to the US, the family settled in Summerville, SC. Her daughter, Carol, was born in 1961, and Michael was born in 1963. She was a resident of Summerville for 57 years. She was a career teacher. She taught music in Winnsboro for two years. In St. George she taught music at Reevesville High School and St. George High School. She taught a variety of classes in the Summerville Schools including first through fifth grades, seventh grade science and music; she was honored as the Dorchester County District II Teacher of the Year in 1981. She retired from teaching in 1985. Mrs. Murray was perhaps best known as a church musician. She learned to play the organ at Columbia College because no one else could fill the need for an organist there. She began playing the organ for churches while she was teaching in Winnsboro, SC for the two years after college graduation. After moving to St. George, she began playing for the Baptist Church there. Later she was the organist at Summerville Baptist Church, retiring after 37 years. Shortly after retiring, she became the interim organist at Stallsville Methodist Church, a position she occupied for 20 years. She played her last church service on Thanksgiving Sunday, only 2 weeks before she passed away. Overall, she was a church organist for 70 years. Although she was well known as a church organist, she enjoyed a wide range of music. In high school she arranged the song “Lucky Old Sun” and accompanied her brother to win the high school talent show. She also won the Horace Hight Amateur show playing “Hamp’s Boogie Woogie”. She declined the prize, a contract to tour with the show for a year, because she wanted to teach. She loved old movies, especially musicals. Her favorites were Singin’ in the Rain and Gone with the Wind. The last movie she watched was The Glenn Miller Story. Mrs. Murray was also active in the broader community. She was a founding member of the Summerville Music Club, the Summerville Garden Club, and the Summerville ADK Honorary Sorority for Teachers. She played with a number of bridge groups, and she was a fierce competitor. Even in the months before her passing, she continued to play bridge at the Presbyterian Home and played bridge daily on her computer. The great love of her life was her husband, Dan, with whom she shared 57 years of marriage. She always played “Danny Boy” as a prelude at church on the Sunday before his birthday. Although he had no musical abilities, he fully supported his wife's great musical talent. He bought her a piano within 3 months of their marriage and later bought a Steinway grand piano in Germany for her. She also loved and inspired her children. All of them learned to play multiple instruments, and all of them completed college. Two of her children and her grandchildren have advanced degrees as well. She was especially proud of Michael, who is a well-known professional pianist. Mrs. Murray touched the lives of many people through her teaching and her music. She will be remembered fondly by many and especially by her children and grandchildren. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial contributions be made to The Cheez and Cracker Box, P.O. Box 303, Bamberg, SC 29003 or to Presbyterian Communities of South Carolina at http://www.preshomesc.org/support-our-mission/make-a-donation/. The family would like to especially thank the staff of The Villages of Summerville and Ms. Vicki Brown of Hospice of Charleston for their outstanding care of our mother while she was a resident there and especially in the last several weeks of her life. They supported Mrs. Murray and her family in every possible way and made her passing as peaceful as possible for all. A memorial message may be written to the family by visiting our website at www.jamesadyal.com ARRANGEMENTS BY JAMES A. DYAL FUNERAL HOME, 303 SOUTH MAIN STREET, SUMMERVILLE, SC 29483 (843)873-4040.

Margaret Bishop Murray

September 6, 1926 - December 17, 2015