[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 195 (Friday, December 6, 2019)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1550]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              TRIBUTE HONORING MAYOR SAMUEL EUGENE MURRAY

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                         HON. JAMES E. CLYBURN

                           of south carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, December 6, 2019

  Mr. CLYBURN. Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to an 
outstanding South Carolinian, leader, public servant, and personal 
friend. Samuel Eugene Murray has ably served as Mayor of Port Royal, 
South Carolina for the past 24 years, and will be leaving office at the 
end of 2019.
  Mr. Murray is a native of Dorchester County and received his 
Bachelor's and Master's degrees from South Carolina State University. 
He continued his graduate studies at The Citadel, University of South 
Carolina, Appalachian State and Harvard University.
  Mr. Murray is an educator at heart and served 16 years as a teacher 
in the Beaufort Country School System. He rose to become an elementary 
school principal for another 20 years. During his tenure as principal, 
Mr. Murray was the recipient of a $50,000 Science Foundation Grant and 
was the only Principal from South Carolina chosen to attend that 
Summer's Principal Institute at Harvard University.
  He has always had a passion for public service. Mr. Murray served on 
the Port Royal Town Council for 17 years before becoming mayor. During 
his tenure as mayor, he worked to improve his city's infrastructure 
with a new town hall, police station, and fire station. He also oversaw 
the city's growth with the construction of new health care centers, 
several commercial buildings, numerous businesses, apartment complexes, 
single family homes, and fast food facilities. During his time in 
office, Port Royal's population increased from 1,500 to approximately 
13,600.
  In addition, Mr. Murray has been a servant leader in his community by 
mentoring a young man with special needs for thirty years, serving as 
coach for the Neighborhood Youth Core Baseball Team, and volunteering 
as a homebuilder for Habitat for Humanity. He is involved in many 
organizations and has served in leadership roles in several of them.
  He is currently a board member of the Low Country Blood Alliance and 
a member of the South Carolina Black Mayors Association. He has served 
on the Beaufort County Board of Special Needs, the Board of the 
Municipal Association and the Reconstruction Era Committee that laid 
the foundation for what is now the Reconstruction Era National Park.
  Because of his tremendous service, Mr. Murray has received numerous 
awards and special recognitions. He was awarded the Lifetime 
Achievement CIVITAS Award for Business excellence presented by the 
Beaufort Chamber of Commerce, Congressman Joe Wilson Second 
Congressional District Minority Advisory Committee Award, and the 
Special President's Award by the Montford Point Marine Association.
  Madam Speaker, I ask that you and my colleagues join me in offering 
congratulations and sincere gratitude to Mayor Samuel Eugene Murray for 
his unwavering service to his community. His extraordinary work has 
made a great impact in the lives of the citizens of Port Royal and I 
honor him for his selfless deeds throughout his career.

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