Milton Murray

MURRAY, Rev. Milton Hood

The Rev. Milton Hood Murray, 94, a retired Episcopal priest, died January 3, 2024. The funeral service, followed by a reception, will be held at 11:00 AM, Thursday, January 11, 2024, at All Saints' Episcopal Church, 634 West Peachtree Street NW, Atlanta, Georgia (404-881-0835). Burial will follow at 4:00 p.m. in the Alta Vista Cemetery, Gainesville, Georgia (770-535-6883).

Milton was born January 22, 1929, in Athens, Georgia, the son of his late parents, William Mercer Murray and Lourine Hood Murray. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife of over 52 years, Jane Ringo Murray; and by his brother, Mercer Murray, Jr. He is survived by his daughter, Marguerite Murray (Paul Roberts) of Cartersville, GA; his stepdaughter Jane "Betty" Barnett (Larry) of Southern Pines, NC; his three stepsons Charles Rudolph (Sara Starbuck) of Carterville, IL, James Rudolph (Terry) of Boise, ID, and Richard Rudolph (Cindy) of Lawrenceville, GA; several step-grandchildren; and great-grandchildren; one niece, Becky Fisher (Greg) of Indialantic, FL; two nephews, Tom Murray (Marsha) of Arnoldsville, GA, and Robert Murray of Watkinsville, GA; and several cousins.

Milton grew up in Macon, Georgia, attending the public schools and graduating in 1946 from Lanier High for Boys where he was a cadet officer in the R.O.T.C. During his youth, as Milton often recalled, he spent many happy peach seasons with his grandparents in nearby Fort Valley while working in the packing house of the Murray family peach business, a low-paying but required rite of passage for all Murray children and teenagers.

He was a 1950 graduate of the University of Georgia where, following in his father's footsteps, he was a member and senior-year president of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity. After college he attended the U.S. Naval Officer Candidate School in Newport, RI, and served as a gunnery officer aboard the battleship USS Iowa. It was during his service in the Navy that Milton felt called to the ordained ministry, and in 1955 he enrolled in the Virginia Theological Seminary under the sponsorship of the Episcopal Bishop of Atlanta.

Following ordination in 1958, the bishop sent him to the beautiful gentle hills of northeast Georgia as vicar of Calvary Church, Cornelia, and Grace Church, Clarkesville, and as manager of Camp Mikell, Toccoa. During this tenure, still a bachelor, Milton fell in love with Jane Rudolph, a beautiful young widow with four children and a member of Calvary Church. They married in 1960, and a few years later another daughter was added to the family.

Following his northeast Georgia years, Milton served as rector of St. Stephen's Church, Milledgeville (1964-1970), as rector of St. Bede's Church, Atlanta (1970-1984), and as an associate rector of Christ Church, Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida (1984-1991). Prior to his retirement in 1991, he was active in community and diocesan work and was elected a deputy to two national Episcopal General Conventions. Milton was well suited for the parish ministry and especially enjoyed pastoral care and preaching. He believed that ordained ministry did not end with retirement, and, out of gratitude that God had called him to a life of service, he remained active for many post-retirement years.

He greatly appreciated the love and care shown him by his family and enjoyed staying in touch with them and his friends and former parishioners. His greatest joy, however, was his deep and abiding love for his wife Jane and the laughter and adventures they shared for over half a century.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that contributions may be made to All Saints' Episcopal Church (634 W. Peachtree St. NW, Atlanta, GA 30308) or Canterbury Court (3750 Peachtree Rd. NE, Atlanta, GA 30319).