In Memoriam: 1940s

Notices sorted by graduation date

Dorothy Ritchey Ringer (Nurs ’48) of Ewing, New Jersey, died December 16, 2016. Ms. Ringer turned her dream of a college education into reality by completing the University’s collaborative United States Cadet Nurse Corps program, which trained critically needed registered nurses during and after World War II. After graduating, she was a maternity nurse at Orange Memorial Hospital in Orange, New Jersey. She married William Ringer in 1950, and in 1956 the couple settled in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, where they raised four daughters and a son. Ms. Ringer worked at Holy Family Manor nursing facility in Bethlehem for 15 years, retiring in 1986. She also was a community and church volunteer. She and her husband moved to North Port, Florida, in 1998, where she volunteered at a caregiver respite program. The couple moved to New Jersey in 2015. Survivors include her husband, William; a sister and brother; five children, including Sarah Ringer (Col ’76 L/M); eight grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews, including Vernon Scott Ritchey (Engr ’69 L/M).

Herman C. Mullins (Com ’49) of Midlothian, Virginia, died March 26, 2017. He served in the U.S. Army in the Pacific Theater in World War II. After graduation, he began his career with General Motors Acceptance Corp. in Richmond, Virginia.  He worked out of Virginia before holding managerial positions in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. He retired to Virginia in 1987. Survivors include his wife, Dora Martin Mullins (Nurs ’48); a daughter; five grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

Philip Foster Murray (Col ’44, Med ’46) of Newport News, Virginia, died December 22, 2016. He served in the U.S. Army in Japan and Korea. As a board-certified dermatologist, he was in private practice in Hampton from 1955 to 1976, in addition to being on staff at the Hampton VA Medical Center. He also taught at the Medical College of Virginia in Richmond and at Eastern Virginia Medical School. In retirement, he helped establish a class called Approaches to Better Health at Christopher Newport University’s LifeLong Learning Society. He was also instrumental in establishing the Peninsula Peace Education Center and was a member of Physicians for Social Responsibility. He especially loved music and played piano into the last days of his life. Survivors include his wife, Elizabeth; a sister; two daughters, including Patricia Murray Colonna (Nurs ’78 L/M); and four grandchildren, including Elizabeth Marie Colonna (Col ’10 L/M).