Carol Carey Murray, 78, of Aliso Viejo, California, passed away peacefully at home on February 2nd, from the complications of Parkinson’s Disease.
She is survived by her loving husband, Hagerstown native Roger Alan Murray; daughter Kimberly Sams; grandson Alexander Page; step-daughter Sara Murray Gainey; step-son John Murray; four step-grandchildren Chris, Mary, Michael and Greg Gainey; three brothers and their wives Dick and Bunny, Bob and Sue, and Bill and Laura Carey; and, many nieces and nephews.
Carol grew up in Oak Park, Illinois, the only daughter of R. John and Dorothy Carey. She graduated from high school there in 1958, and from the University of Illinois in 1962, where she was a member of Alpha Xi Delta Sorority. She majored in Retailing and worked for several years as a department store buyer in Chicago. After moving to California in 1970, she became a very successful realtor, eventually retiring in 1997.
Carol married her first husband, Tom Sams in 1964, and their daughter Kimberly was born in 1968. They were divorced in California several years later. Then, Carol and Roger were introduced by mutual friends in 1979, and married in 1980 at the Wayfarers’ Chapel in Palos Verdes. They lived initially in Irvine, moving to Aliso Viejo in 1989. They were avid offshore sailors aboard their sloop Harbinger, active members of the Blue Water Cruising Club, and traveled worldwide, mostly in smaller cruise ships.
Carol also loved to play golf and contract bridge, and was very active in Alpha Xi Delta alumnae organizations in Southern California, including the establishment of a new chapter at the U C San Marcos campus. She also volunteered with Families Forward in Irvine and at the Sherman Library & Gardens in Corona Del Mar.
Carol’s remains have been cremated, and a Remembrance was held on March 16th at the O’Connor Mortuary in Laguna Hills, California. A Celebration of her life will be held on Saturday, April 13 at 1:00 pm, in Hagerstown, conducted by Culberson Funeral Home, with burial in the Murray Family Plot, West Lawn Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation in Carol’s memory to the American Parkinson Disease Association, 135 Parkinson Avenue, Staten Island, NY 10305, phone 800-223-2732.