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PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - JUNE 26: A general view outside the stadium prior to the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 group H match between FC Red Bull Salzburg and Real Madrid CF at Lincoln Financial Field on June 26, 2025 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Luke Hales/Getty Images)
Jim Murray, the former general manager for the Philadelphia Eagles and co-founder of the first Ronald McDonald House, passed away Aug. 25 at age 87.
“Throughout his time in Philadelphia, Jim Murray was a passionate leader and team visionary who helped steer the franchise to its first-ever Super Bowl appearance,” Jeffrey Lurie, Chairman and CEO, Philadelphia Eagles, said in a statement.
“We are saddened to learn of his passing and extend our heartfelt condolences to his friends and family. Jim long served the community with integrity and compassion, co-founding the Philadelphia Ronald McDonald House and helping launch the Eagles Fly for Leukemia initiative. His lifetime of contributions has certainly left a lasting impact on the Eagles family and the greater Philadelphia community.”
Jim Murray led Eagles to First Super Bowl Appearance
Murray started with the Eagles in 1969 as a member of the team’s public relations staff. He became the Eagles general manager in 1974 and helped guide the team to the NFC Championship in 1980 as Philadelphia made its first-ever Super Bowl. The Eagles lost to the then-Oakland Raiders.
Murray was fired after the 1982 season and replaced by the daughter of previous Eagles owner Leonard Tose, Susan Tose Fletcher.
Jim Murray is West Philadelphia Born and Raised
Raised in a row home in West Philadelphia, Murray attended West Philadelphia Catholic High School before graduating from Villanova University in 1960.
After his college graduation, he served in the Marine Corps Reserve before starting his sports administration career with the minor-league Tidewater Tides and Atlanta Crackers. He returned to his alma mater in 1966 as sports information director, before joining the Eagles.
Jim Murray was Inspired by Daughter of Eagles Tight End
Aside from football, Murray also lived a life of community service.
Inspired by a 3-year-old girl’s battle with a cancer diagnosis, Murray is responsible for a partnership between the Eagles and McDonald’s that led to the world’s first Ronald McDonald House, a program that has grown to over 1,000 programs in 62 countries.
Former Eagles tight end Fred Hill was told by doctors his daughter, Kim, had six months to live after being diagnosed with acute lymphatic leukemia in 1969. But Kim spent years fighting and receiving treatment at St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children.
Hill retired from football in 1971, but worked with the Eagles and Tose on a fundraiser for leukemia research. The event was wildly successful and Tose tasked Murray with raising more funds for the cause.
Dr. Audrey Evans had Idea for Parents of Sick Children
Murray met with Dr. Audrey Evans at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, who informed him that its been her experience that the parents of children battling cancer have no where to stay while their child is in the hospital for treatment.
Looking for a significant amount of money, Murray then called the advertising agency that has the account for the fast-food giant McDonald’s. Murray asked what their next promotion was. McDonald’s was getting ready to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day by offering the Shamrock Shake and Murray asked if they’d be willing to donate 25 cents for each shake sold to help pay for the house.
A McDonald’s executive’s response was simple.
“‘What if we give you all the money? Can we call it the Ronald McDonald House?'” Murray remembers Ed Rensi asking. “I said, ‘If you give us all the money, you can call it anything you want to.’ That was the spark of the miracle right there.”
The first Ronald McDonald House was bought on Spruce Street in Philadelphia for $42,000 and officially opened in October 1974.
Kim Hill was fortunate to witness the impact of her experience on the world. She survived more than 40 years beyond her doctor’s original prognosis before passing away in 2011 at age 44 from brain tumors, which her father attributed to the radiation she received at age 3.
Murray also created the highly-successful Eagles Fly for Leukemia campaign, which supports research for a cure and helps families deal with emotional and physical traumas as result of the cancer diagnosis.