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Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
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James R. Murray
JAMES R. MURRAY
Cedar Rapids
James R Murray died May 20, 2020, at the Woodlands in the Meth-Wick Community.
A family funeral service will be held at Cedar Memorial West Side Chapel
at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 23, with Father Mark Murphy of St. Jude Catholic Church presiding. Burial will follow at St. Joseph's Cemetery.
James was born Dec. 16, 1933, to William Murray Jr. and Colleta Fiedler Murray
of Hopkinton, Iowa. He graduated from Hopkinton High School in 1951, after which he enlisted in the U.S. Air Force. He served as an air traffic controller during the Korean War, and was honorably discharged in May 1956. After his discharge, he went to work for the Federal Aviation Administration until he retired in 1988, as operations manager for the Great Lake Region. James was a member of St Jude Church, Knights of Columbus, and a lifelong member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, where he was the original commander of the Johnsburg, Ill., Post. He loved to fish, hunt, and play board games with his six grandchildren. He was an avid Notre Dame and Chicago Cubs fan.
Surviving is his wife of 62 years, Joan; sons, James Jr. (Ann) and Patrick (Jennifer); daughter, Anne Stamper (Rick); sisters, Virginia Kitto and Beverly Collmann; and grandchildren, Kate, Joe, Corrin, Kelsey, Grant and Mathias.
He was preceded in death by his parents; and brothers Robert, William III and John.
Memorials can be sent to St. Jude Parish.
Online condolences may be directed to the family at www.cedarmemorial.com under obituaries.
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