Dorothy Reese Murray, 86, formerly of Houston, TX, passed peacefully June 29, 2026 at Southern Knights Senior Living, Tomball, TX.

Following her wishes, Dorothy’s ashes will rest at Mill Creek Congregational Church Cemetery, Laurel, MS.

Born July 18, 1939 to Edward Maurice Reese and Edith Hollis Reese at St. Joseph’s Hospital, Houston, TX, Dorothy graduated Bellaire High School in 1957. In 1958, Dorothy graduated Massey Business School. Following her graduation from Massey, she worked as Executive Secretary at Monsanto Oil Co. where she met Harrison F. Murray Sr. Dorothy and Harrison Sr. married in 1963.

Dorothy graduated University of Houston June 1968 summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English. Dorothy was a member of both Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society (1965) and Phi Kappa Phi (1967)

Transferred to London, England with Monsanto Oil Co., Dorothy and Harrison lived at 10 Park Mansions Knightsbridge, London from 1974 until they retired to Malaga, Spain in 1986. Following her husband’s death in December 1989, Dorothy returned to Houston. Always the scholar, she worked towards a Master of Arts degree in English at University of Houston, and earned an Associate in Applied Science degree in Technical Writing from Houston Community College December 2000. Using her degrees, Dorothy did technical writing from 1991 until retiring in 2016, moving to Austin, TX in 2017.

In Dorothy’s own words: During twenty-seven years of marriage, I achieved or surpassed allbut one of my goals: having children. I wanted a college degree, and I obtained two of them. I wanted a two-week vacation in Europe, and I lived there for 15 years. I wanted a beautiful, comfortable home where I could be an accomplished hostess. I entertained in London on a lavish scale that most Americans could not even imagine. I read somewhere that you’ve had a good life if you achieve 50% of your goals. By that standard, I’ve had a great life. I achieved 60% or 70% of my goals.

Dorothy is preceded in death by her husband Harrison F. Murray Sr., her parents, Edward M. Reese and Edith Hollis Reese, brother-in-law Tom Goodrich and step-daughter Bethany Murray.

She is survived by her two sisters Carolyn Sue Goodrich and Nancy Reese of Huntsville, AL; her nieces and nephew, Bethany Parr Rust (Tom), Kristen Parr (Mark) Ginsberg, Marion Goodrich Horn (Jim), Kelle Goodrich Jones, and Sam Goodrich, as well as her paternal aunt Seetsie Thompson. Dorothy is also survived by her 4 step- children: Harrison F. Murray Jr. (Kathleen), Barbara Murray PhD, Sheila Murray Crane (Jim) and Claude D. Murray (Tamara).

Memorials may be donated to The Nature Conservancy, her favorite among the many agencies she faithfully supported over her lifetime.

The family of Dorothy R. Murray wishes to extend our sincere thanks to Southern Knights Senior Living, Aspire Hospice LLC and Graceful Memorial Chapel for their loving and attentive care to her needs in her final months.