John Piper Murray

John Piper Murray, 81, of Fort Collins, Colorado died in hospice care on Friday, April 29, 2016. John was born in Sioux Lookout, Alberta, Canada to Alexander Keith and Mildred Isabella (Wilson) Murray. He moved to New York, then became a United States citizen at the age of 20. He is a graduate of Williston Academy, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and The George Washington University. He is survived by his wife, Dorcas (Morgan) Murray whom he married September 5, 1959 in Fort Collins, daughters, Laura Murray of Colorado Springs and Carol Cochran and her husband, Tim of Fort Collins; grandchildren, Tatum Cochran of Fort Collins, William Laycock of Colorado Springs, Catriona Cochran of Denver, and Shane Laycock of Colorado Springs. He is also survived by his sister, Suzanne Murray of Canmore, Alberta and brother, Peter Murray (Mary Swanson) of Emigrant, Montana as well as several nieces and nephews. After graduating from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute with a degree in Electrical Engineering, he started his telecommunications career with the Air Force in Rome, New York in 1958. Upon completion of his service, he continued his education at The George Washington University earning a Master’s degree in Engineering Administration. He worked for the Mitre Corporation and Sachs Goldman in Maryland, and then the Institute of Telecommunications Sciences in Boulder, Colorado. He then formed his own telecommunications consulting and radio spectrum management business and worked all over the world to help countries and companies expand their telecommunications infrastructure while working within international laws and regulations. He travelled and worked in countries from Afghanistan to Zambia, spanning the globe and the alphabet. He was well known in the community for generously sharing his knowledge, time, talents, humor and efforts. After retirement he was active in the Fort Collins UniverCity Poudre River Task Group, as well as continuing his lifelong involvement with the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) writing numerous papers and presenting at conferences. His lifelong interest in people and how things work served him well in such varied interests as sailing, classic sports car road rallies, scuba diving, flight, history, economics, and technology. His passion for learning and sharing that knowledge will be sorely missed. Contributions in John’s memory may be made to the CSU Foundation Morgan Library Endowment. PO Box 1870, 510 University Services Center, 601 South Howes St, Fort Collins, CO 80523-7112. Celebration John! Saturday, 10:00 a.m., June 11, 2016 at his home.

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John Piper Murray

December 14, 1934 - April 29, 2016