Frances Myra Murdock Was a Native of Maine

Frances Myra (Coombs) Murdock of Vineyard Haven died at her home on Saturday, Jan. 4, after a long battle with lung cancer. She was 85. Frances and her late husband, Earl F., moved from the Hyde Park section of Boston to Martha's Vineyard permanently in 1972. She had summered on the Island since 1955.

Frances was born in Winn, Me., on Feb. 4, 1917 to the late Charles T. & Charlotte (Grant) Coombs. She attended Colby College in Waterville, Me., majoring in English. She then moved to Boston to attend Bryant & Stratton College. In December 1937, she was hired as one of the first employees of the fledgling Blue Cross company. She worked in public relations and was the editor of the company's magazine, Happenings. She was also the founder of the Sterling Club of Blue Cross. She retired in 1972.

Frances was married to Earl F. Murdock in 1955. He predeceased her in 1992. They lived in Hyde Park. They built their present house on Look street in Vineyard Haven in 1969. She was a loving lady of great humor and pleasant demeanor. She will be missed by all who came to know her.

She is survived by her cousins, Ruth Cogswell and Homer Coombs, both of Texas, and Vera Knight of Wolfeboro, N.H.; a niece, Tina (Upham) Pratt of California; a nephew, John Bolendz of Pennsylvania, and her extended family of Duke and Darlene Webb and their four daughters, all of Boston.

Her funeral will be held on Saturday, Jan. 11, at 10 a.m. at the Chapman, Cole and Gleason Funeral Home in Oak Bluffs, followed by an 11 a.m. funeral service at Grace Church, Vineyard Haven, the Rev. Donnel O' Flynn officiating. Interment will follow at the Oak Grove Cemetery Vineyard Haven. Memorial donations may be made to Hospice of Martha's Vineyard, P.O. Box 2549, Oak Bluffs, MA 02557. Arrangements are under the care of the Chapman, Cole and Gleason Funeral Home in Oak Bluffs.