Melinda Ann Murray

Melinda Ann Murray passed away peacefully on September 19, 2024. She was born on September 13, 1961 in Lakeland, Florida to Bennie Jo (Cozart) and Robert Perry Murray (Bob). Melinda was Salutatorian of her graduating class at Santa Fe High School in Lakeland. She later graduated with honors, Phi Beta Kappa, from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she was a member of the Kappa Delta Sorority. Melinda also received a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Virginia Law School and practiced briefly in Lakeland and New York City, where she resided for many years.

Melinda was a lifelong learner and an avid reader. She was curious and creative in numerous areas and a lifelong member of First Presbyterian Church. After she relocated to Lakeland in 2015, she enjoyed spending time in the summer at the family’s mountain home in North Carolina.

She is predeceased by her father and her great-niece, Isla Mahoney. She is survived by her mother, sisters Katherine Murray Coleman (Cliff) and Elizabeth Murray Jurgensen (Greg), and her nieces Elizabeth Coleman Mahoney (Terry, children; Myles, Tripp, Wayne) and Sarah Coleman (fiancé Charlie Luger).

A family service honoring Melinda will be held at a later date. In Lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Compassionate Care Hospice, 2525 Drane Field Road, Suite 4, Lakeland, Florida 33811 or Alzheimer’s Association, 14010 Roosevelt Blvd #801 Clearwater, Florida 33762 or First Presbyterian Church, 175 Lake Hollingsworth Drive, Lakeland, Florida 33801.