Murray Ehrlich

Murray Ehrlich was born in New York City on March 11, 1924, to Isadore and Ida Ehrlich.  At the age of 17, he joined the United States Army and volunteered to serve with the Office of Strategic Services (OSS).  In his three years of service during WWII, Murray conducted espionage activities behind enemy lines in the Pacific theater with Detachment 101 in Burma.  Murray's bravery and intelligence were recognized with a Bronze Star. After returning from the war, Murray married Ruth Ostrofsky, the sister of his good friend, Bernie.  Murray and Ruth had three children, Candie, Robin, and Arlene.  As an electrical engineer for Bendix, and later Boeing, they lived in many cities across the United States, including Baltimore, MD, Ft. Walton Beach, FL, Barstow, CA, and Ann Arbor, MI before coming to Washington. Murray had many hobbies and activities, but none so prevalent as his love of ham radio (K7AU) and building gadgets.  The office in his home was filled with mechanical parts, soldering irons, and amateur radio equipment; he could often be found building switches and creating electronic contraptions while listening to Morse code blaring through his speakers.  Not to be outdone by technological innovations, he was an early adopter of email and, at the age of 85, joined Facebook.  Both proved to be successful platforms for him to share his favorite jokes, many of which were groan-worthy plays on words. When he wasn't building inventions, Murray was likely engaging in his other favorite activity: eating. A self-proclaimed food-lover, Murray frequently ate out at local restaurants, where servers quickly became familiar with his sarcastic humor and witty banter.  Very few meals passed that he didn't respond to getting the check with “I thought it was your turn to pay!” Murray peacefully passed away on April 25, 2012, at the age of 88 (although he expressed disbelief on every birthday at how good he looked “for being 35”).  He was preceded in death by his wife, Ruth, and his son-in-law, George Robertson.  He is survived by his daughters Candie Mason and husband Jimmy, Robin Robertson and Arlene Larsson and husband Karl, two grandchildren, Jennifer Mason and her husband, Mike, and Joshua Mason and his wife, Stephanie, two great-grandchildren, Johnathon and Zachary Mason, and his sister, Peppy Ehrlich.   He is also survived by his close companion and beloved dog, Sadie.