Lines From Linda

May 2008

In the blink of an eye, spring arrived. I had to flip the calendar back to January 1st to find out how my time was spent on and off the road during the first quarter of the year.

The Bob Hope Chrysler Classic is a glorious PGA event in our desert, especially with La Quinta’s SilverRock Resort being added to the four-course rotation this year.

The 16th annual Murray Media Pour during Classic weekend was well attended by many of our favorite golf writers and the PR guys from Brener Zwikel & Associates. First-timers were Mark Lamport-Stokes, Reuters Global Golf Editor, and Jill Painter, sportswriter for the Los Angeles Daily News.

With little time to regroup, son Bill McCoy (JMMF Vice President) and I were off to Super Bowl XLII in Phoenix where we caught up with USC Murray Scholars Arash Markazi and Ben Malcolmson. This Super Bowl was by far the most exciting game I’ve ever seen … and I’ve been going to Super Bowls since 1970. The very best 2008 Super Bowl party was hosted by ESPN The Magazine where Arash, Bill and I caught up with our ESPN pals John Walsh, Chris La Placa, Rick Reilly, and we made a lot of new friends, including Mike Ryan, VP & GM, Community Newspapers/The Arizona Republic.

I was in the air again to Miami for the Association for Women in Sports Media (AWSM) convention February 8-11. Convention organizer Lydia Craver of the Miami Herald overwhelmed us with an incredible lineup of speakers, including Donna Shalala, University of Miami President, Donna De Varona, two-time Olympic gold medalist and member of the International Swimming Hall of Fame, U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame and Women’s Sports Hall of Fame. Dara Torres, four-time Olympic swimmer and trying for her fifth at the age of 41, was also a featured speaker. Kudos to Lydia and her committee.

We dined at fabulous South Beach restaurants with our good pal Dave Barry, humor columnist and author … and a Pulitzer Prize-winner … who happens to be married to Miami Herald sportswriter and AWSM member Michelle Kaufman.

I loved hanging out with my best chum Julie Ward, recently retired USA Today deputy sports ed, Penn State J-school pals Marie Hardin and Malcolm Moran, and reconnecting with some of the most AWeSoMe women in journalism, or in the world for that matter: Christine Brennan, Leslie Visser, Colleen McDaniel, Jenni Carlson, Gail Dent, Jennifer Overman, Juliet Macur, Jill Painter, Sherry Perez, Lee Nessel, and so many others.

University of Florida ‘05 Murray Scholar Andrew Abramson, now a sportswriter for the Palm Beach Post, joined me for AWSM’s Sunday luncheon featuring guest speaker, University of Miami President Donna Shalala. And, what a treat it was having new-best-friend Jay Rand at our table. Jay is director of public relations at Homestead-Miami Speedway, and a Hoosier, a la Indiana University-Bloomington.

It was heaven for me to be anchored in La Quinta for 31 solid days in March. No trains, planes or automobiles! The 2008 JMMF scholarship materials were sent electronically to our 29 J-schools across the country, and essay submissions were received in the office by the April 25 deadline.

Our seven judges, J.A. Adande, ESPN.com, Dan Bickley, Arizona Republic, Mike Harris, Associated Press, Jill Painter, Los Angeles Daily News, Leo Roth, Rocherster (NY) Democrat and Chronicle, Kevin Sherrington, Dallas Morning News and Mike Vaccaro, The New York Post, will have their results in by June 27, at which time the seven 2008 Murray Scholars will be announced.

To the envy of all my friends, I made my ever-so-often trip to The Masters last month, even though it was a short 2-day stay. The real purpose for my being in Augusta on Wednesday, April 9, was to present legendary golfer Gary Player with the ASAP/Jim Murray Sports Award at the GWAA awards dinner. It was a marvelous reunion seeing old friends Furman Bisher, Julius Mason, Ty Votaw, Beth and Ron Green, Sr., Marino Parascenzo (GWAA’s Lifetime Achievement Award recipient), Larry Dorman, Jerry Tarde, ASAP’s president Peter Paul Balestrieri, among others.

My guests for the dinner were LA sports marketing guru Joann Klonowski, Reynolds Plantation socialite Linda Dudley (hubby Bill Dudley refers to the Lindas as L1 and L2!) and University of Florida ‘03 Murray Scholar Jill Martin, now a satellite operator booking domestic satellite feeds for CNN Sports.

I failed to mention that upon arrival in Atlanta on Tuesday, April 8, Jill Martin joined me for dinner, along with Arizona State ‘04 Murray Scholar Nicole Saidi, who also works at CNN. They had never met until our dinner at Seasons 52-Perimeter.

Our April 19th “Swing into Spring” luncheon at the Renaissance Esmeralda Resort in Indian Wells, Calif., featured guest speaker Master’s Triathlete Cherie Gruenfeld, of Cathedral City, Calif.

Cherie captivated her audience with inspiring stories of leaving the corporate world sixteen years ago as a computer software business executive to train for marathons. Cherie has competed in 19 Ironman races, including the Ironman World Championships in Hawaii 14 times and has won the world title in her age group seven times. She is the first female over 55 years of age ever to break the twelve-hour mark in an Ironman and she did it in Hawaii, the toughest course in the world. Cherie will compete (again) in the Kona, Hawaii Ironman this October.

Memorial Day weekend is behind us now. Is next week really June 2008? We have lots of work to do before the JMMF 10th anniversary event this fall. The date has been changed to Thursday, October 30, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, so please mark your calendars.

My next blog update will hopefully be sooner than later. In the meantime, will the Los Angeles Lakers be the 2008 NBA Champions? Will Big Brown be the next Triple Crown winner? Will Phil Michelson keep winning golf tournaments?

More importantly, your financial support of the Jim Murray Memorial Foundation’s scholarship program is vitally important. Currently, 61 Murray Scholars, the next generation of sports journalists, are perpetuating not only Jim Murray’s legacy, but also the legacies of journalists all over the world.

Soon you will be able to donate through Pay Pal via the JMMF website, www.jimmurrayfoundation.org,. In the meantime, the mailing address is: JMMF
P.O. Box 995, La Quinta, CA 92247-0995. Thanks, everyone.

Best to all,

Linda

Linda McCoy-Murray
President/Founder
Jim Murray Memorial Foundation
A 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization
Federal ID#94-3331025

December 2007

Dear Friends ~

The Jim Murray Memorial Foundation (JMMF) extends its thanks to you for your generosity during 2007. Your philanthropic gifts have made a difference in providing scholarships (now numbering 56) to journalism students around the country. For a listing of participating colleges and universities, please visit our website: www.jimmurrayfoundation.org

August 16, 2008, will mark the 10th anniversary of Jim Murray’s death. “A Salute to the Living Legends of Sports & Media” awards dinner is being planned Thursday, September 18, 2008, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, Beverly Hills, California. The event will also serve as a Murray Scholar Reunion for a total of 63 scholarship recipients. Please mark your calendars and plan to attend a most memorable evening.

As you consider your 2008 gift giving, please remember the Jim Murray Memorial Foundation. Your gift will ensure the continuation of our efforts to perpetuate the Jim Murray legacy.

We send all good wishes to you for a happy, healthy and prosperous 2008.

Best personal regards,

Linda

PHOTO: December 1, 2007, Murray Scholars’ Reception
The Residence Club at PGA West, La Quinta, California
L-R: Gabe Khouli,’07 Ball State; Zach Berman, ’07 Syracuse Univ.; Emily Ortman, ’06 Ball State; Liz Manring, ’07 Univ. of Missouri; Tom Bransfield, ’05 Trinity College-Hartford; Dallas Woodburn, ’07 USC; Josh Moyer, ’07 Penn State; Brittany Hughes, ’07 OU-Athens
Photo: Michael Cline Photography

Dear Friends:

Have you ever stopped to think how a smile impacts the lives of others or even your own life?

As the 2007 golf souvenir journal was being assembled, I couldn’t help but notice the unbridled enjoyment bursting forth from all the photographs. The 2007 Murray Scholars’ joyous smiles validate the Jim Murray Memorial Foundation’s (JMMF) mission just as the essay judges’ smiles seem to reflect the pleasure of their assignment.

We at the JMMF had a lot to smile about this past year:

* A $10,000 grant was received from Newman’s Own Foundation.
* Chapman & Associates Charitable Foundation, Pasadena, Calif., gave us a generous grant of $5,000 to support our scholarship program.
* The McCormick Tribune Foundation and the NFL Charities, Inc. renewed their Five-for-Five Patron Grants in the amount of $25,000 to secure one scholarship each for a period of five years.
* The St. Louis Rams organization renewed its Five-for-Five Patron grant in 2006.
* American Honda Motor Co., Inc. is in the fifth year of its grant commitment.

Recently, the JMMF Board of Directors voted to increase the amount of our scholarships from $5,000 to $7,500 for each of the seven essay winners, beginning in 2008.

Therefore, it is our mission to have all seven scholarships endowed through the generosity of JMMF board members, corporations, foundations, and yes, individuals who are passionate about the JMMF purpose. It takes time, energy, and money to reach our goals.

Of course, I also smile when I think of the three new journalism schools we added to our scholarship program this year: The University of Hawaii at Manoa, Penn State University and SUNY-Brockport. My American Airlines frequent flyer statements always remind me of the marvelous university visits I’ve made since early 2007.

More smiles come each morning as I sip my coffee from mugs I’ve collected during my campus visits, remembering the gracious hospitality I was shown by faculty and students.

No one had a bigger smile than 2002 USC Murray Scholar Arash Markazi when he was invited to join the JMMF Board of Directors in May, and with Bill McCoy’s appointment as Vice President of the Board, they bring youth and energy to the next decade of JMMF fundraising activities.

Next year, 2008, is the 10th anniversary of the Jim Murray Memorial Foundation. We shake our heads in disbelief, wondering how that could be. Ten years? Already?

A gala celebration is being planned for Thursday, September 18, 2008, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, Beverly Hills, Calif. “The Living Legends of Sports & Media” will gather to honor the Jim Murray legacy, along with the 63 Murray Scholars who continue to perpetuate the Jim Murray spirit of journalistic integrity and creativity, and by wearing their Murray Scholar badge of honor with respect and dignity.

It should be a wonderful event so please mark you calendars.

It is with immeasurable gratitude that I thank all our sponsors, donors, and volunteers for their loyalty and generosity. I am especially and eternally grateful to my friend Arnold Palmer, who for nine years has graciously served as the honorary chairman of the Jim Murray Invitational Golf Classic.

I am extremely proud of all our Murray Scholars and those of you who help nurture the purpose of their chosen field of journalism. You are deeply thanked for supporting the goals of the Jim Murray Memorial Foundation. Smiles for everyone!

Warmest regards,

Linda

http://jimmurrayfoundation.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/11/sept-07-syracuse-unviersity-linda-07-murray-scholar-zach-berman-rosanna-grassi-assocdean-si-newhouse-school-of-public-comm.JPG

The JMMF is proud to welcome Penn State University, the University of Hawaii at Manoa and State University of New York-College at Brockport to its journalism scholarship program. Twenty-nine journalism schools now compete annually for seven $5,000 scholarships offered by the JMMF.

“Your program provides a great reminder of the importance of careful, fair, thoughtful and honest sports journalism, the way Jim went about his work for all those years,” noted Malcolm Moran, Knight Chair, Sports Journalism & Society, at the John Curley Center for Sports Journalism at Penn State. “We will work very hard to identify and support a candidate worthy of a scholarship as a Murray Scholar.”

Gerald Y. Kato, Associate Professor and Chair at the University of Hawaii at Manoa School of Communications proclaimed, “There can’t be a better role model than that for students aspiring to write about sports. The students should be as passionate about writing as they are about sports. That’s a lesson they can learn from reading Jim Murray.”

“SUNY Brockport’s student newspaper, The Stylus, was voted the best student newspaper in a student poll taken at the 11 SUNY colleges and the second best of the 30 universities in the SUNY system,” proudly explained Rick Woodson of SUNY Brockport’s Communications Department, who also teaches a sports writing course at the school.