Douglas "Murray" McAuley

It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of our beloved Murray, who passed away on Tuesday, March 11, 2025, in Calgary, Alberta, at the age of 80 years. A proud family man and community builder, over the decades Murray moved through this world with a smile, a joke and so much compassion.

Murray was born on December 29, 1944. Born to William and Kathleen (Boyle) McAuley in Brandon, Manitoba and big brother to Pat Tritter (Duane), Betti-Rae Toole (Larry) and Rob McAuley (Kathi).

Married for over 57 years, Murray and Sue (Binder) had a modern partnership supporting each other to pursue their careers and interests while sharing the workload at home. Together they played sports, entertained, camped and headed out on long road trips or Sunday drives singing along to one of Murray’s mixed tapes.

With the arrival of their daughters, Marcy McAuley and Dana McAuley-Faulds, they shared their love of the outdoors, athletics, music and world cuisines. When their daughters married, Murray welcomed sons-in-law, Piotr Staszelis and Stephen Faulds to the family. He chose Papa as his preferred name with the arrival of his grandchildren Konrad Staszelis, Maya Staszelis and Mason Faulds.

Murray also leaves behind his extended family and a wonderful group of friends whose friendships he cherished like family.

A brief history

It’s hard to sum up eighty years of a full life but we tried ...

In 1959, a promotion with Firestone for his father brought the McAuley family west to Calgary. Settling into the new community of Haysboro across the street from what was Hays Farm (now Hays Apartments), these new Stampede City slickers settled into big city life with the aroma of the prairies at their front door.

Outgoing and always on the move, as a youth Murray was active in and around his community. He was a newspaper carrier, athlete, occasional babysitter, DeMolay member, large truck tire changer at Firestone and even a deejay spinning the best grooves at local parties.

Murray attended the new Henry Wise Wood High School where he played volleyball, basketball and football; his athletic pursuits included community baseball and hockey. Forever a proud Wise Wood Warrior his letter jacket hung in every closet he lived in until his passing.

After high school Murray started his post-secondary education at Mount Royal College. It was playing for the Cougar’s men's volleyball team at a local tournament that Murray met the love of his life, Sue. Even though Sue’s ankle was badly sprained, Murray’s teammates helped their love along by carrying Sue to sit with him. Two years later in true Calgary fashion a summer wedding became a winter wonderland as Murray and Sue said their “I do’s” on June 10, 1967.

After Mount Royal, Murray was a day trader at the Pacific West Brokerage House and a volunteer football coach for Henry Wise Wood. However, Murray’s vision for his career was to be an athletic director but no university in Canada offered this emerging profession. At the University of Calgary (U of C) Murray blazed a new trail as the first student registered to complete a physical education major with a business minor. While completing his degree, Murray coached the Mount Royal College men’s volleyball team.

Upon graduation from U of C, Murray returned to Henry Wise Wood as a teacher and coach working with his friend and mentor Ken Tidsbury. In 1976, Ken recruited Murray to the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) as the Assistant Coordinator of Student Athletics where he continued to teach, coach and build his skills in sports administration. Over the 11 years Murray was at a SAIT he was promoted to Coordinator of Student Athletics and later Athletic Director.

Instrumental in the building of the Campus Centre, it became the hub for Trojan Athletics, intramural sports and community events. Being part of the Trojans success at provincial, regional and national championships was a point of pride for Murray. Highlights included the Trojans men’s basketball team winning the national championship under coach Phil Allen and Murray taking the men’s hockey team to China (the first time a team toured and played exhibition games across China).

In 1992, Murray was inducted into the SAIT Athletic Wall of Distinction in the builder category recognizing his groundwork to ensure sustainable funding for athletics was in place that eventually became the Trojan Athletic Foundation after his departure. Murray also served on the executive boards of the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) and the Canadian Colleges Athletic Association and in 2017 was inducted into ACAC’s Hall of Fame. Outside of SAIT, Murray was a member of the Calgary Booster Club and was proud to be part of the group that sparked the idea to bring the world to Calgary and host a Winter Olympics.

In 1987, Murray and Sue moved to Vancouver with Dana for new horizons and a try at west coast living. Although the temperate climate and ocean shores were highlights, the opportunity in 1989 for Murray to become the University of Lethbridge’s first full-time Athletic Director wooed them back to Alberta.

During his six years at U of L, Murray helped revitalize the athletics program and backed by Lethbridge’s strong athletics focused community, he co-founded the Pronghorn Booster Club ensuring sustainable funding was in place for years to come. Proof of this investment was the national championship win for the Pronghorns men’s hockey team under coach Mike Babcock.

In 1994, the southern Alberta winds took Murray, Sue and Dana back to Calgary. A time to reconnect with family and friends and pursue new career paths. The purchase of Campus Supply became Murray’s last chapter in his career, giving him the opportunity to be his own boss, draw on his business and people skills and be on the road serving his customers across Western Canada. For the first eleven years Dana worked alongside Murray assisting him in various capacities while building her skills for the future. Shifting his base of operations out of his home, Murray formed an alliance with Don Cable of Cable Consulting and together they navigated a new competitive space that often pitted ‘the little guy’ against new and bigger companies.

At 75 years old, the time came for Murray to retire and enjoy more time with his family and friends. In 2019, Murray's lifelong dream to return to his parent's Irish homeland was achieved. With his son-in-law Piotr as chauffeur, Murray, Sue, Marcy, Dana, Konrad and Maya together explored the sights, sounds, food and drink of Dublin, Belfast, Galway, Cork and many points of interest along the way. But the highlight for Murray was an extended stay in the Ballymena, County Antrim area where his maternal and paternal family lines originated. Here he added to his McAuley family tree, saw Mount Slemish where his Grandad McAuley played as a boy and was welcomed into the 300-year-old Boyle family home.

In 2023, Murray and Sue embraced retirement life by moving to Boardwalk Retirement Community (BRC). This warm and vibrant community of seniors became the best place for Murray after the isolation of the pandemic. Keen to be active in daily life at BRC, Murray volunteered to create new music activities, oversee their first Stampede Breakfast and led the effort to raise the money to purchase a seated curling game that will come into play later in 2025.

Saying good-bye

We were in awe of how Murray approached his final days with humor, compassion and lots of love. He shared the immense pride he had of his family, the opportunities he enabled for himself and others, the many friendships he enjoyed, his contributions to every community he was a part of and his perseverance through tough times.

He stayed in the driver's seat reaching out as best as possible to his family and friends to share his Stage 4 cancer diagnosis. But really these calls were about him having another chance to connect, reminisce, laugh and celebrate the best moments of his life. He didn’t reach everyone, but know he was thinking of you.

There are many things we will miss about Murray; his jokes and his smile; his compassion, encouragement and big bear hugs; and his amazing encyclopedic like memory. The best girl dad a daughter could ask for; his unwavering support; in the stands cheering us on; that booming voice; his love of music and all things sports.

So, with a Furry Murray in hand, a toast to you for always being the spark of happiness in our lives!

Celebration of Life

We are planning to host a Celebration of Life in June, details are still being finalized. We encourage you to sign up to receive more information at Murray’s Celebration of Life.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in Murray’s name to the Trojan Athletic Foundation Awards, the Calgary Booster Club, Pronghorns Booster Club or the Alberta Cancer Foundation.