UPDATE | Bishop Murry recalled as ‘true friend’

YOUNGSTOWN — The Most. Rev. George V. Murry, the fifth bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Youngstown, died this morning at Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital in New York, according to a release from the diocese. He was 71.

Funeral arrangements are pending. The diocese expects to release more information later.

Gov. Mike DeWine during an afternoon briefing expressed his condolences "to those who loved" Bishop Murry, the first African-American bishop to lead the Youngstown diocese.

"Our prayers are certainly with all those in the diocese who loved him," he said.

Earlier this month, Murry announced his intent to resign as bishop, after 13 years leading the diocese, citing "reasons of ill health" in his letter to the Vatican.

Murry battled two reoccurrences of acute leukemia. He was first diagnosed in April 2018.

Murry was installed in March 2007 as the Youngstown diocese's fifth bishop, succeeding the Most Rev. Thomas Tobin.

He stepped back from daily duties after his leukemia diagnosis in April 2018. He recovered and returned to the diocese on a part-time basis that September.

The cancer returned the following July, however, and he underwent a second round of treatment, which put the disease into remission, according to the diocese.

Murry's leukemia returned in April 2020. He was receiving outpatient treatment at his home, until his admission to the New York hospital Monday.

Rev. Msgr. John Zuraw, the diocese's spokesperson, said he saw Bishop Murry handle matters of the diocese as well as his illness, with patience and "total dependence on God."

"Even before Bishop Murry got the diagnosis of leukemia he was a man of patience. He truly weighed all the aspects of any decision that he needed to make for the good of the diocese. He did not move hastily. … He was truly a patient man and I saw that even more, now for the last three years, that he put things in God's hands."

George Vance Murry was born in December 1948 in Camden, N.J., the son of the late George and Viola (Brown) Murry.

Saint Pope John Paul II in January 1995 appointed Murry Titular Bishop of Fuerteventura and Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago, where he was ordained to the episcopacy in March 1995. Bishop Murry then became Coadjutor Bishop of St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands in May 1998. He succeeded to the see in June 1999.

Bishop Murry succeeded Bishop Thomas J. Tobin as the fifth bishop of the Youngstown diocese and was installed on March 28, 2007.

While leading the local diocese, Bishop Murry also served on the U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishops committee to address racism, which developed the conference's pastoral letter on racism, used as an educational tool in church jurisdictions across the country.

Bishop Murry was also among 18 members appointed to the Ohio Task Force on Community-Police Relations by then-Gov. Jon Kasich.

Bishop Murry attended St. Joseph's College Philadelphia in Pennsylvania, St. Thomas Seminary in Bloomfield, Conn. and St. Mary's Seminary in Baltimore, Md., where he received a Bachelor's degree in Philosophy in 1972. He entered the Society of Jesus that year and was ordained for its Maryland Providence in June 1979. He earned a Master of Divinity degree from the Jesuit School of Theology in Berkley, Calif. In 1979 and a doctorate in American cultural history from George Washington University in Washington, D.C. in 1994.

Bishop Murry served as a faculty member and dean of student activities at Gonzaga College High School in Washington, D.C. from 1974 to 1976. He was assistant professor of American studies at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. from 1986 to 1990, and also served as president of Archbishop Carroll High School in Washington, D.C. from 1989 to 1994. He was named Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs at the University of Detroit-Mercy in 1994.

Throughout the day, as tributes come in, Mahoning Matters will add them here:

• U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown:

"Our hearts go out to the friends and family of Bishop George Murry, who broke down barriers and fought for social justice. Bishop Murry's leadership will be missed in the Mahoning Valley, as well as his generous spirit."

• U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan of Howland, D-13th:

"I am saddened to hear of the death of Bishop George Murry. He was a great man and a strong and committed leader not only to the Catholics in the Diocese of Youngstown, but to the community-at-large. At a time when we face so many issues that need the attention of good leaders, his voice will be deeply missed."

• Youngstown Mayor Jamael Tito Brown:

"Lynette and I are saddened by the passing of Bishop George Murry. He has been a true friend and mentor to me during my time in public service. I will be forever grateful for his guidance in my life and his steadfast leadership in the Valley. The Mahoning Valley will miss his echoing words of wisdom and his reassuring smile."

• Youngstown State University President Jim Tressel:

"He was just always there when you needed him. On the other hand, you just never felt as if he stepped in where he wasn't needed. He just had a great willingness to do whatever he could on behalf of the community."

• Father Terrance Hazel, pastor at St. Michael's Parish:

"He was just a real people person. [Church members] would meet him at some event and the next time they saw him, he remembered their name. That just means so much to people."

This story was originally published June 5, 2020 at 3:09 PM with the headline "UPDATE | Bishop Murry recalled as ‘true friend’."