Sometimes, the best of plans takes a turn…for the better!
Murray Black’s father was a West Point graduate and Rhodes Scholar at Oxford where he met and later married Murray’s mother, who was from Cirencester, England. His father was killed when Murray was very young. With the outset of World War II, his mother found herself with two young children and no possibility of going back to her family’s home in England.
Murray’s dream was to be fifth in line to go to West Point, but his hopes were dashed due to the unexpected finding of high blood pressure. The staff at Walter Reed could not get his pressure down. At the same time, he’d applied for a regular NROTC scholarship. He passed all his exams, including his blood pressure, “Since that was not what I really wanted to do.” However, providentially, at UVa on a blind date, Murray met the spice of his life-Ginger.
Fast forward to a life-changing week. Murray graduated college with a degree in Electrical Engineering, was commissioned into the Navy, and wed his lovely Ginger in New Jersey. Murray found that he really liked the Navy, as he loved being at sea. The places he saw were incredible, including Europe (and the 1958 World’s Fair in Brussels), the Panama Canal, and the Caribbean. After the navy and graduate school, he went to George Mason and became the founding chairman of the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering and later held several dean positions.
Ginger grew up in Belleville and Glen Ridge, New Jersey. She, too, had college plans that were dashed. She went to Mary Washington for two years, then nursing school at UVA. As she’d grown up in New Jersey, her family found this pretty dramatic.
Time to fast-forward for Ginger. Her life quickly changed into one as a Navy wife, raising three girls and teaching part-time. She worked as a Registered Nurse and along the way she found people really needed love, prayer, and to have someone to listen to them. Today, Ginger finds reading Scripture important and fulfilling. She works on scrapbooking and loves to walk on beaches. The sand, the waves, the sound of the water, all are precious to her. Crafting cards has become almost a ministry.
The ocean seems to accompany Ginger and Murray throughout their life together. Every three years, they host their whole family at the homey-feeling Sandbridge, which is south of Virginia Beach. Generations have attended for almost 30 years. On their next trip, they will see their recently born great grandson. They enjoy traveling and have seen many places.
Early in their life together, Church life was integral and continues today. They credit this commitment as making a major change in their lives. A remembrance from a “Marriage Encounter” weekend was the philosophy that “Love is not a feeling. Love is a decision.”
Unique are their five missionary trips to Uganda, which was greatly depleted by two corrupt regimes. These trips were life-changing for them. Murray helped the prominent Anglican seminary in Uganda to become a full-scale Christian University which was important to educate leaders to improve the life of its citizens. Ginger was involved in women’s conferences, workshops, and prayer. She toured hospitals and clinics and saw how badly they were equipped and lacking skills. A new nursing program and medical school are both now providing improved medical care.
They found Ugandans so kind, so appreciative-their presence meant much more than just sending money in support. Well, their suitcases, crammed with laboratory equipment on their journeys over, were valued highly, too! They are currently involved in scholarships and assist with funds for medical and engineering equipment. Their efforts are now taken on by a daughter and her husband.
Joys of their life are their three daughters, three sons-in-law, seven grandchildren, grandchild-in-law and great-grandson. Their three daughters visited The Woodlands before their decision and said, “This is for you.” They knew, when they stepped into their community, that it just felt right. The decision was made from their mutual respect: “If anything ever happens to either, our support system is in place.” “Everyone has a smile on their face.” And so do Murray and Ginger Black.
