Dr. Murray Moliken Obituary (1937 - 2022)

Murray Moliken, M.D., born July 10, 1937, died Monday, March 21, 2022, at 84. He passed peacefully at home with his family by his side. He was a family physician who cared for every patient as if they were a friend. As a son, brother, cousin, and uncle, he had room in his heart for all. As a friend, he considered everyone his family. To many, he was a mentor, a gracious and generous father figure, someone to be admired, respected, and profoundly loved. Murray was deeply in love with his wife Anita, and they were inseparable for 61 years, a bond of mutual adoration. He treasured, beyond belief, his daughter Cheryl and son Warren. His ultimate, precious joy could be found in his grandchildren Eli, Dylan, Hannah, Jordan, and daughter-in-law Sharon, all of whom knew that joy every day beyond any distance. The middle son of Max and Ann, he is survived by brothers Albert (Fran) and Paul (Susan), and nephews Gary, Marty (Susan), and Gabe (Laura). Murray was a graduate of Temple University and Jefferson Medical College and served in the Air Force. Brought up in West Philly, he spent most of his time in Cherry Hill at his office on Kings Highway and self-designed home on Dell Drive. In his office, you felt safe because you trusted this eminently qualified doctor. And in his home, you always felt welcome. Summers spent at the Shore with beloved cousins brought laughter and unforgettable memories. He loved skiing, fishing, and boating, with most Ventnor fish arguing they got the best of him. He was an honorary fixture at the counter of Ponzio's Diner. Murray was a lover of life and laughter. A mischievous prankster, a repository of jokes, a master of the hilarious and perfect one-liner, no practical joke was beyond his imagination. And no one was safe from his humor, not his parents, his family, his friends, or his staff. He effortlessly brought smiles to everyone he encountered, even to a restaurant server he would never meet again. Murray believed it was his job to both cure people and make them laugh. For years, he treated world-famous entertainers at New Jersey's famed Latin Casino. At the age of 60, he reinvented himself, becoming the Clock Doc. Murray founded his non-profit organization, Kids Time, and through it, he gathered communities of school children, creating watch-adorned clocks, one watch face for each hour, brightening the lives of sick kids in hospitals across the country. The joy Murray got from doing this labor of love was inexpressible, and he pursued it with his usual intensity. The countless people who were fortunate enough to love him or to simply have crossed paths with him a single time share both simple and epic stories of his loyalty, kindness, and escapades. Knowing Murray allowed each of us to know a great, unique, utterly unforgettable human being. And we are all better because of the brilliance of his life. Relatives and friends are invited Friday, March 25, 2022 beginning 10:45 am to PLATT MEMORIAL CHAPELS, Inc. 2001 Berlin Road, Cherry Hill, NJ where funeral services will begin promptly at 11:30 am. The service will also be livestreamed on plattmemorial.com. Interment will be private. The family will receive relatives and friends from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm at the Legacy Oaks Clubhouse, 2 Lowell Drive, Marlton, NJ 08053. Contributions in his memory can be made to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, www.stjude.org.