|
Anne Bodkin Murphy
Class of 1979
Athlete
 Anne Bodkin Murphy was an original member of the HHS gymnastics team, started by Coach Gail O'Donnell (HOF 2015). Anne was a four-year performer, and the Blue Streaks won the district championship each of those four years. As a freshman in 1976, Anne was district champion in Vaulting and the Balance Beam and finished 2nd in the region on the Balance Beam, qualifying her for the state meet, where she finished second place. This made her the first female athlete in HHS history to advance to state level competition.
Anne followed this up in her sophomore year by placing 1st in the district and region in the floor exercise, 2nd in the district and region in vaulting and 2nd in the state in each of those events. Anne missed most of her junior year with an ankle injury but rebounded in her senior year. At the Harrisonburg Invitational Meet she placed in the top five in five different events, including a first on the on the Balance Beam. She had two 1st place finishes and a 2nd place finish in the district meet, and a 3rd and 4th place finish in the regional meet, narrowly missing qualifying for the state meet. Following the season, Anne was named as All-District Athlete of 1979 and the recipient of the Vincent D. Reilly Memorial Award as the top student-athlete of 1979. In June, Anne graduated as Valedictorian of the HHS Class of 1979.
After graduation, Anne enrolled at JMU and after two years transferred to George Mason University. She graduated in 1983, earning a B.S. in Biology with Honors and Distinction. In 1990, Anne earned a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the George Washington University School of Medicine. Today Anne lives in Encinitas, California where she is a Professor of Pharmacology at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine. She is the recipient of the National Institutes of Health grant funding the study of Alzheimer's Disease and is a member of the NIH College Reviewers. Anne is the daughter of Mary Evelyn Neville (HOF 2010) whom she refers to as "an awesome mom." |
