Edward Murray Taylor's Obituary
EDWARD MURRAY TAYLOR, JR. of Orange City, Florida and former longtime resident of Fairmont, West Virginia passed away on Monday, August 29, 2011 at his residence. Murray was born August 28, 1921 in Fairmont, WV, the son of the late Edward M. and Martha Hoffman Taylor.
Murray's only sister, Bettie Marshall Taylor Wakenight, passed away on November 20, 2005.
Murray attended Fairmont schools, graduating from Fairmont Senior High School in 1938. He attended Fairmont State College for two years and then studied accounting at Bowling Green College of Commerce (now part of Western Kentucky University) in Bowling Green, KY. graduating with his accounting degree in 1942.
Following graduation he enlisted in the United States Navy and served during World War II in Naval Intelligence, first in Washington, D.C. and then in Pearl Harbor, HI. He also spent a short period in the active reserve in 1950 and 1951 during the Korean War.
Murray was employed by the Monongahela Power Company in 1946 as a junior accountant in the Fairmont Billing Department. He worked as traveling auditor, senior accountant in Marietta, OH, and division audito in Parkersburg, WV and then spent over twenty years in the Fairmont General Office as assistant comptroller. He retired in 1983 as Manager of Budgets, Statistics and Financial Reporting after 37 years of service. He is a past president of the M-Vets Club and was a member of the Pioneer Club in Fairmont.
On June 21, 1947, he married Betty Nell Burrows, a native of Weston, WV. Betty passed away on February 19, 2000. Murray is survived by his two children. Daughter Martha Bea Goshaw is a professor of mathematics at Seminole State College in Sanford, FL. She and her husband Dave reside in DeBary, FL. Son Charles Murray Taylor is an assistant athletic director at Georgia State University in Atlanta, GA. He and his wife Lynn reside in Alpharetta, GA.
Grandchildren are Melissa Rogers & her husband Steve of Fort Walton Beach, FL; HM3 Matthew Clutter & his wife Emily currently stationed in Camp LeJeune, NC; Mark Clutter of Fort Walton Beach, FL; Lauren Taylor of Atlanta, GA; and step grandson Brian Goshaw & his wife Tammy of Lancaster, PA.
Great grandchildren are Taylor Rogers and Haley Rogers of Fort Walton Beach, FL; Delaney Clutter of Wheeling, WV; and step great grandchildren Andrew, Alexis, and Alyssa Goshaw of Lancaster, PA.
In 1951 Murray became a charter member of the Fairmont Civitan Club, serving the club as secretary-treasurer and president. He was also an active member of the Marion County Tuberculosis Association, serving as treasurer and president of the Board of Directors. He represented Marion County on the state board and served as president of the state association from 1978-1980.
In 1964 Murray joined the Fairmont Kiwanis Club, serving as secretary-treasurer in 1965-1966 and president in 1973-1974. In 1984-1985 he served as lieutenant governor of Kiwanis District 3 and then in 1987-1988 as Governor of the West Virginia Kiwanis District. He has served on three Kiwanis International committees and is a life member of Kiwanis International. He is a member of the Legion of Honor, a Hixson Fellow, and a recipient of the Tablet of Honor. He served for many years as secretary-treasurer of the West Virginia Kiwanis Foundation. In 2000 he became an active member of the Sanford (FL) Kiwanis Club, serving for several years as club secretary.
For many years Murray was a member of the Central United Methodist Church, where he served in a number of positions including treasurer. He later joined the First Baptist Church, serving as deacon, treasurer and Finance chairman. At his death he was a member of Grace United Methodist in Lake Mary, FL.
Murray was an avid genealogist, producing several family histories of his and his wife's families. He belonged to the Marion, Taylor, and Harrison County Historical Societies. He was also a stamp collector, a hobby which he began at age ten and gave him much pleasure in his later years.
Memorial donations may be made in Murray's honor to the West Virginia Kiwanis Foundation or the Florida Kiwanis Foundation.
The family will receive friends at the Ford Funeral Home, R.C. Jones Chapel, 1410 Country Club Road, Fairmont, West Virginia Friday, September 2, 2011 from 2-4 & 6-8 p.m. and Saturday, September 3, 2011 from 10-11 a.m. The funeral service will be held in the funeral home Saturday at 11:00 a.m. with Reverend D.D. Meighen officiating. The committal service will follow in the Woodlawn Cemetery, Fairmont, West Virginia. Serving as active pallbearers will be Matthew Clutter, Mark Clutter, Tom Wakenight, Art Smith, Aaron Hawkins and Doug Nuzum. Honorary pallbearers will include members of the Fairmont Kiwanis Club.
Online condolences may be made to the family at www.FORDFUNERALHOMES.com
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