Christine Metz Murray

Christine Metz Murray slipped away in her husband's arms the morning of August 13th, 2025. Diagnosed with cancer ten months to the day prior, she fought the disease successfully until a couple setbacks allowed the cancer to get the upper hand.

Christine Elizabeth Metz was born in Washington, DC to Sophie Koelsch Metz originally from Nuremberg, Germany and Robert Earl Metz, originally from Lansing, Michigan. Christine is survived by her loving husband of 51 years (best friend of 57 years) Frank Jeffrey Murray (Lt Col, USAF Ret), their son Robert Joseph Murray Sr, Daughter Suzanne Douglas-France, granddaughter Brittany Lynn Oden (nee Douglas), grandsons Brandon Robert Douglas, Robert Joseph Murray Jr, Barrett Dewayne France, and great-granddaughter Fallon Mae Oden. Christine M. Murray is interred at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery in San Antonio, Texas. In Section 58, her grave is number 393.

Christine Metz was born while her father was serving on the destroyer USS Murray. She took her first of many cruises at age 2 when she and her mother traveled on the SS United States from New York to Le Havre, then to Paris to take the Orient Express to her mother's home town of Nuremberg. Upon leaving the Navy, her father joined a steamship company that moved him from one port city to the next every 2 or 3 years. She grew up in Seville Spain, Naples, Genoa and Rome Italy. Every school taught in a different language so by the time she moved back to the US in 1966, she spoke 5 languages without accents. Every two years, her family returned to the US on "home leave" and traveled each way on either the SS Constitution or the SS Independence, which her father's company owned.

In 1968, her father was reassigned to Philadelphia and they bought a home in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. On her first day of school, Christine walked into home room and saw that everyone was talking to one another except one young man. That was Frank Murray, whose family had also moved to Cherry Hill that summer. Both being "new kids" in school, they quickly became friends. Christine decided that "new kids" needed a support group so she went to the administration and received permission to start a Newcomer's Club, of which she became President. The counselors would contact Christine whenever someone transferred in to the school and she would show and introduce them around so they would have an instant group of friends. This consideration and helpfulness toward others was a hallmark of her entire life.

Upon hers and Frank's graduation from Cherry Hill High School East in 1970, they promised to stay in touch. Christine went off to American University in Washington DC. She was a serious student, and the unrest that year interfered with her studies. Teargassed on her way to class, burning the library when she had a paper due, and members of the Black Panther movement invited by her roommate to live in her dorm room, were not conducive to her educational goals. Meanwhile, Frank Murray had gone to Colorado to the USAF Academy. Christine wrote him every day. Frank told her there was none of that turmoil in Colorado so Christine applied, and was accepted to several schools in Colorado choosing Temple Buell College, soon renamed Colorado Women's College, in Denver. She overloaded to finish in 3 years. Her grandmother, Iris Metz, who had faced an uphill battle to win her own college degree by scrubbing floors, was graciously funding Christine's education. Christine wanted to finish quickly to save her grandmother money.

While in Colorado, Christine became a part of the social fabric of Frank's cadet squadron 16 (The Chickenhawks.) She would give the cadets rides, set them up with her friends, and provide a sympathetic shoulder whenever one of them suffered a breakup or crisis of confidence. Her association and the mutual love between herself and the Chickenhawks extended beyond her lifetime as all of the surviving cadets who were able to travel attended her Interment Ceremony and Celebration of Life.

Christine and Frank were married in the Cadet Chapel at the USAF Academy on graduation day, June 5th, 1974. After a brief honeymoon in Aspen, they began their married and Air Force life, stationed through the years in California, Illinois, Ohio, Florida, Alabama, Delaware and Texas. With their two children they settled permanently in San Antonio, Texas where Frank retired from the Air Force after 21 and a half years of service.

Through their Air Force years, Christine was always active and helping in many ways. She mentored the younger or newer Air Force wives, especially those away from home for the first time. She always volunteered in any way she could at her children's elementary schools. She formed a Parent Teacher Organization at an elementary school that had never had one and held fundraisers to buy the school's first computers, educational software and teacher training. Christine was a leader in both Cub Scouts and Girl Scouts. She was active in the Officer's Wives Club and sang in their choir and performed in their little theater productions.

After they settled into post-Air Force life, Christine became active in neighborhood associations. Their first summer in San Antonio, the neighborhood's swimming pool service walked off without saying a word and the pool became greener and greener as the chemicals wore off. Christine took over management and maintenance of the pool, cleaned it up and became the Pool Manager. She hired and trained lifeguards, purchased and maintained chemicals, and maintained the pool and filtration systems which required extensive repairs due to neglect. Everyone recognized her as the "Pool Lady" for the many years she continued to manage the pool. Because she maintained the pool as a volunteer, the Homeowner's Association was able to save enough money to develop a lot and build a playground. After 5 seasons managing the pool the Homeowner's association had become solvent so she chose and hired a company to manage the pool. Subsequently she became the "Playground Lady." Every week she would shovel and rake the gravel which migrated with storms and play activity. She called this her exercise program. As the equipment aged, she repaired and painted it and replaced several of the play structures. Christine and Frank purchased some rental homes in another neighborhood. Since no one there was interested in serving on their HOA board, she volunteered. She was elected president and also managed their pool for 10 years as a volunteer. She started annual pool parties with food and music which increased the interest and involvement in the Association.

Christine never shied away from hard work. She and Frank rehabilitated several houses. And she would accompany Frank on his work trips whenever possible. A project that would take him 5 days with a locally hired helper, he could do in 4 with her. She always had the driveway shoveled in time for Frank to get home from work. For a landscaping project she had 3 tons of gravel delivered, which were dumped onto the driveway. She moved all that gravel by shovel and wheelbarrow to the back yard and swept the driveway before Frank came home from work.

Christine loved reading and dancing. Above all, she loved to travel. As she spent a lot of time on cruise ships growing up, she convinced a skeptical Frank to take a cruise for their 26th wedding anniversary. They cruised on the SS Independence which brought back so many memories for her, followed by 10 more cruises together, both ocean and river cruises. At every opportunity she accompanied Frank on his work trips whether he needed an assistant or not. However, when her daughter and granddaughter needed someone to watch their children, she gladly stayed home to raise them. She remarked on occasion that she thought she would be traveling the world at that stage of her life, but she loved her grandchildren and great-granddaughter more. She read to 3 generations on her lap, taught them their colors, numbers and letters, and taught them to swim.

Her most notable qualities were her friendliness, positivity, and love for her family. She always placed others before herself. She never failed to have time for others. She made friends everywhere. Even at the chemotherapy clinic, normally a rather dreary atmosphere, Christine would engage everyone around with upbeat conversation. She would say "welcome to the party row" to all the people around her. Pollyanna was one of her favorite books as a child, and she lived that positive outlook. She told people that she was "the glass half full girl" and was always finding the "silver lining" in every situation. Even in intensive care, when her organs were failing and the doctors said she was dying, whenever they came into the room and asked how she was feeling, she would pipe up and say "Great!". Often times, she said "You know cancer sucks, but the silver lining is that it brought all my family and friends here to see me."

She often told her friends that she was having a WONDERFUL life. And if it were to end, she had no regrets.