John Murray

John F. T. Murray, Col. U.S. Army (Ret.) died at the Hospice of Chattanooga Hospital in Chattanooga, on Saturday, Aug. 18, 2012.He was born in 1918 to John and Catherine Hagan Murray of Elmhurst, N.Y., the oldest of six children.He was preceded in death by his beloved wife of 34 years and the mother of his six children, Dorothy Roberts Murray in 1975. He was also preceded in death by his second wife, Rosella "Roz" Sanderson in August 2010, and by his youngest son, Richard David Murray, in December 2010.Survivors include his brother, William Murray; his sons, John F. X. Murray (Louise) and William Robert Murray; and his three daughters, Mary Lynn (Steve) Applegate, Sue Anne (Chris) Brown and Sara "Sally" (Bill) Lockett. He is also survived by a total of 13 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren. The grandchildren are: Marisa Murray, Michele Murray Pyne, John William Murray, Charles "Chuck" E. Davis IV, Christopher Lynn Davis, Jenny Crews, Deb Grissett, Kathy Perrin, Will Murray, Dorothy ("Don") Waller, John Calvin Thornton Jr., and Molly and Kathleen Murray.Col. Murray, ("Dad", "Jack," "The Colonel") was a 1941 graduate of the United States Military Academy, West Point, N.Y., and a 1951 graduate of Harvard Law School. He served his country in WWII in General Pattons Third Army, G2, 87th Division in France, Luxemburg, Belgium, Czechoslovakia and including the infamous Battle of the Bulge. He received various medals for his service to his country including the Bronze Star, (2) French Croix de Guerre Medals, Legion of Merit w/Cluster, and the American Defense Award presented by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Subsequently he traveled with his family to an assignment in Seoul, Korea, prior to the Korean War. Upon graduation from Harvard in 1951, he was transferred to the Judge Advocate Generals Corps and assigned to the Pentagon where he served as the senior military assistant to the civilian attorney, (Joseph N. Welch), during the Army/McCarthy Hearings. After his time at the Pentagon, he traveled with his family and served in Salzburg, Austria, and both Livorno and Verona Italy. Upon returning to the U.S. in 1958, he was assigned to Fort Benning, Ga. After his term there, the family moved to Pennsylvania where he attended the Army War College in Carlisle. In 1961 he was appointed Commandant of the Judge Advocate Generals School in Charlottesville, Va. He remained there until retiring from the Army in December 1964.During his "civilian" years he was a Professor of International Law at the University of Georgia, Athens, Ga., and was appointed associate dean in 1966. In 1976 he was appointed Dean of the Law School of St. Louis University. He retired from his civilian life" and his second career in 1979 and returned to Georgia to be closer to friends and family."1 have spent my retirement visiting family and friends, attending class reunions at West Point, and sharing time between homes in the mountains of Georgia and North Carolina and the beaches of Florida. I have visited all the lower 48 states in motor homes and have sailed to Alaska and flown to Hawaii. I've been blessed with good health and good friends. I have had the pleasure of watching my children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren grow and develop their individual personalities." I have lived for many years, and as they say in the Military, "Old soldiers never die they just fade away."At a later date a Catholic Mass will be celebrated at the Chapel in West Point, N.Y.Burial will follow beside his beloved "Dorothy" in the U.S. Military Cemetery, West Point, N.Y. The family wishes to thank the staff at the Terrace at Mountain Creek, Chattanooga, for their care and attention. They also wish to acknowledge with deep appreciation the important role of Hospice of Chattanooga.In lieu of flowers please make donations in his name to Hospice of Chattanooga or to Saints Peter and Paul Catholic church in Chattanooga.