Ex-husband shares memories of Lunenburg murder victim, vows to be there for their son

LUNENBURG ― A Townsend man whose ex-wife was stabbed to death the day after Christmas, allegedly by her live-in boyfriend, remembers her fondly and is pledging to be there for their grieving teenage son.

Maria C. “Cecilia” Murray, 53, was attacked at the Meadow Woods mobile home park complex at 1790 Massachusetts Ave. about 8:45 p.m. Dec. 26, police said.

Murray, with stab wounds in her back, was rushed to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead. Her live-in boyfriend, Orlando Garcia Rosado, was arraigned on charges of murder and assault and battery on a household member in Fitchburg District Court. He is due back in court for a probable cause hearing on Feb. 6.

According to her ex-husband, Walter Murray III, she was born in Montevideo, Uruguay. She grew up in poverty and only finished fifth grade but worked from a young age as an at-home nanny and housekeeper in her native country.

“She was a really good worker and she got her money together,” Murray said in an interview Tuesday. “She was smart enough to get it all together and bring her kids here.”

In 2002, Ms. Murray migrated to the United States with her three children from a previous marriage: Jose Borges, Claudia Couto-Borges and Miguel Borges. Today, Miguel and Claudia live in Uruguay; Jose Borges died in 2016.

“Right when she came into this country, she started working for Ricky’s Towing and Recovery in Leominster,” Walter Murray said. “She started cleaning for the main house, the people that owned it, the mother and father, then the garage and the shop. After a while, all the kids grew up and they had their own family. So she cleaned for each and every one of their families, every house, every family. She stayed with them to the very end.”

The Murrays were married for 10 years before getting divorced seven years ago. In 2009, the couple had a son together, Walter Murray IV. Five years later, Ms. Murray became a U.S. citizen.

“She was the hardest-working girl I’ve ever been with," Murray said of his ex-wife. "She always had two jobs.”

Other than a strong work ethic and dedication to family, Murray said his ex-wife didn’t have much when the two got married.

“She was living in a rough apartment in Fitchburg,” he said.

A mother to everyone

When the couple got divorced, their son stayed with his mother, while Walter Murray III lived on his own. Four years ago, the boy started living with his father but stayed close to his mother.

“Walt saw his mother every weekend. Every Friday, Saturday and Sunday, that’s where he spent his time, at his mom’s,” Murray said. “We all got along very well. And she was actually happy that he was with me.”

“She just mothered everyone," Murray said. "She did everything. She would go to other people’s houses. When they were sick, she would give them soup. She was very, very giving and she was a really good mother. She loved her son. She did the best she could for where she came from and what was going on in her life.”

Ms. Murray regularly hosted bonfire parties outside her trailer home in Lunenberg, her ex-husband said. She also loved to laugh and dance, he said.

“She was the one who would entertain on the weekend. She had the grill, all the chairs, the seating, the bonfire,” Murray said. “She was the entertainer for the whole neighborhood. A lot of people really cared for her.”

Rosado, whom she met six months prior, had moved into the mobile home where she lived, Murray said.

“My son actually liked him,” Murray said of Rosado. “My son said, ‘I like this guy. He pays attention to me. He’s nice to me. He makes me laugh. He’s funny. I really like him and he makes my mother happy.' And, my son had never said that before about any guy she ever dated. So. I’m like, all right. If he’s all right with you, he’s all right with me then. I said OK. That was it.”

Christmas visit turns to a nightmare

Walt was staying with his mother during the Christmas holiday, Murray said. Murray said his son told him that his ex-wife and Rosado were drinking on Dec. 26 while Walt was hanging out in his room. Then the two had an argument. Because Ms. Murray and Rosado spoke primarily in Spanish when they were together, Walt, who doesn’t understand Spanish, wasn't sure what the argument was about.

“All of a sudden, Walt started hearing his mother screaming, 'Wally, help! Wally, help! Call 911!’ So he went out there and he (Rosado) was over his mother with a knife, a big giant knife,” Mr. Murray said. “And Wally (later) said to me, ‘Dad, his eyes. His eyes were so scary. I’ve never seen his eyes that scary before. He didn’t seem to be like the same guy.’”

Walt ran back into his bedroom and called the police. When the police arrived and identified themselves, “she’s laying face down with stab wounds in her back and a puddle of blood in the kitchen,” Murray said. “Wally, my son, runs out. The police didn’t catch him. He went out. He saw his mother’s body on the ground.”

Bernard Progin, who lives across the street, brought the boy into his trailer home that night while his father rushed to pick him up. They went back to Murray’s Townsend home, where they learned the boy’s mother had died on the way to the hospital.

Today, Walt — who is 14 and attending Nashoba Valley Technical School majoring in graphic art — is living with his father; his father's current wife, Christine Harding-McManus; and her son, Shane McManus, who is a few years older than Walt and started a GoFundMe account to cover Ms. Murray's funeral expenses.

“You couldn’t ask for a better stepmother for my son,” Murray said of Harding-McManus. “She treats like her own child, the love, thank God I got her for my son. She is a smart, intelligent, outstanding person. She’s the smartest person in the family. We all listen to her.”

A celebration of life for Ms. Murray took place Sunday at the VFW in West Townsend. Walt is seeing a counselor to help him through the grieving process, his father said.

Walter Murray III, who proudly declares that he has been sober for two years, said they will get through this tragedy together as a family.

“I’m there for my son,” Mr. Murray said. “I show up every day. I just want the best for him. I’m in a good spot to be there for him at this time.”

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Ex-husband shares memories of Lunenburg murder victim Maria C. Murray