It's Time. Faces of The Campaign - Tilton School

giving his time and energy to make sure the seniors’ lastyear would be one that they would remember and cherishforever. A gallery of senior class pictures features Will’scountenance lit up by his characteristically bright smile,one which reveals the great pleasure he took from workingwith the kids over the years.Will Murray was truly a remarkable and unforgettableperson. While he wasn’t granted the longevity that he or wewould have liked, he made the most of the time he wasgiven by embracing life with a passion and a vitality thatmade him special. In so doing, he made a difference in andleft an indelible imprint on the lives of so many people—the students he taught and advised, the colleagues heworked with, and the people he befriended. Some of usmay remember him as Horty, while others came to knowhim as Will. But one thing is certain—none of us whoknew Will Murray will ever forget him.Correspondence from wife Nancy to the Class of 1966:This letter is written to those of you who were friends withmy husband, Horton L. Murray. First of all, you need to knowthat 12 years ago he changed his name to William H. Murray,after a favorite uncle of his. As I write and talk about “Will,”he’s the same person who was at Tilton with all of you.Your friend did a lot with his life after graduating fromthe University of Northern Colorado at Greeley with amaster’s degree in Education. He was an advocate for allchildren with special needs for the 31 years that he taughtat New Hartford Central School. The students he taughtloved him because he understood exactly where they werecoming from. You see, Will was learning disabled andADHD himself, but he showed his students how to overcomethose disabilities.He was also a master’s level ski racer, finishing 5th in thenation in his age group at Park City, Utah National MastersRacing in 2002. He started ski racing at age 43 and, as wasthe way of Will, he dove into it with 110 percent effort.I mention his ski racing because he lived for winter andskiing the steepest, hardest trails he could find on themountain! He started having some difficulty with his leftleg back in December 2005. He tried physical therapy anda chiropractor, but neither proved to be helpful. Althoughhis symptoms persisted and worsened, he insisted on goingto Colorado to ski for 10 days in January 2006. A daywithout skiing in Will’s mind was a day without air tobreathe! No one loved to ski like he did. However, he wasunable to ski, and we had to return home early. An MRIrevealed that Will had lymphoma in his spinal cord. Tomake a long story short, he was admitted to Crouse Hospitalin Syracuse, NY, and within two days of his admission, hebegan radiation and chemotherapy. He had “dodged abullet,” the bullet being paralysis in his legs. He was doingwell until he began to have pain in the thoracic portion ofhis spine. The radiologist said the pain was due to the radiationhe was receiving and just to go home and take his painmedication. Within two days Will was paralyzed in his legs.All he could think of was that he would never ski again.Two surgeries and a serious infection left him weak andimmobile. As a result of the complications from the cancer,the infection and the paralysis, Will died unexpectedly froma pulmonary embolism on March 17. It was a very sad dayfor me, for I lost the love of my life, my best friend.Will met many of his classmates at the 20-year reunionand was very impressed with each of you. Will spoke wellof and often about his time at Tilton and the people hemet. Tilton made a difference in his life and gave himdirection and many fond memories.I thank those of you who were friends with Will forbeing his friend, for making a difference in his life, and forcaring enough to ask what happened to him.I wish each of you a long and happy life. Be well, andmay God bless each of you and your families.46 | Fall 2006