A remembrance of my dad

Francis B. Murray (1928–2022) led a gilded-age life full of surprises and life lessons

I recently lost my father, who died at the age of 93. The following is an excerpt from his eulogy.

First a disclaimer

Bewilderment. That’s the expression on people’s faces when I tell family stories without first providing the following context:

My great-grandfather, Thomas E. Murray, Sr., was an early industrialist and co-founded Consolidated Edison. He spawned a clan of Lace-Curtain-Irish descendants who lived a gilded-age lifestyle until the 1980s, when the money finally gave out.

Frank Murray’s gilded-age life was full of remarkable stories and lessons — some surprising even to his family.

A world-class skier

Dad taught skiing at Lake Tahoe.

He also skied professionally all over the world for filmmaker John Jay who made the Imax-esque movies of the day.

Photo credit Francis B. Murray

Dad invented a ski binding that was manufactured and sold commercially. Once, when I was planning to visit Mt. Rainier, he said, “That’s where my sister Anne and I went to test out my ski binding.”