Posting for Peter Middleton.
Tom Murray, a founding and Life Member of OFO, passed away on Sunday March 9, 2003. He was 87 years old. Tom began birding when he was 12. In 1936 he accompanied Richard Saunders to South Carolina in search of birds. It was on that trip that he and Saunders observed Ivory-billed Woodpeckers in the bottomlands of the Santee River system. He was one of the last to see these magnificent birds in the wild. Later when his birding had taken him to the far corners of the globe he would comment "I've done a lot of birding . . . My world list is around 2,800. But that's (Ivory-billed ) most certainly the crown jewel." A past member and secretary of the Toronto Ornithological Club, Tom's knowledge and expertise were widely recognized. He served as a Regional Co-ordinator for the first Ontario Breding Bird Atlas, conducted Breeding Bird Surveys for more than twenty-five years, and was a founding member of the Grey-Bruce Records Committee. The sight and company of Tom's slight, waterproof clad figure at birding venues around the province, will be missed greatly by all who knew him. The funeral will take place on Thursday, March 13 at 11:00 am, in Division Street United Church, Owen Sound. Visitation will take place for an hour before the service. --- Mark Cranford ONTBIRDS Coordinator Mississauga, Ontario [EMAIL PROTECTED] 905 279 9576 Mark Cranford <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
