Starkey, Lois "Bisi" (MacMurray) of Lexington, formerly of Brookline and Norfolk, CT, on November 5, 2019.

Bisi was born in 1923 to Lois Goodnow MacMurray and John V.A. MacMurray, who served as a diplomat in the U.S. foreign service between 1907 and 1944. Living initially in Washington, D.C., her father's career allowed Bisi to experience life in several foreign countries, including China, Turkey and Latvia. A graduate of Bryn Mawr College, she met her future husband of 46 years, the late Dr. George W.B. Starkey, while she was a volunteer at the Home for Little Wanderers in Boston and George was attending Harvard Medical School. They wed in 1944, and, then after his service in the U.S. Army medical corps in Europe during World War II, they lived in New York and London as he pursued advanced surgical training. Upon their return to the Boston area, they raised their three children, first in Wellesley and later in Brookline. For many years Bisi was a lecturer at the Museum of Fine Arts and later the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, and she took special pleasure in introducing schoolchildren to the world of art. She developed numerous enduring friendships as a long-time member of several clubs and a volunteer at WBZ Call For Action.

An avid gardener and tennis player, Bisi also enjoyed travel, fine arts, and opera, PBS and NPR. Most of all she relished engaging with her family and friends, especially at the family house on Doolittle Lake in Norfolk, CT.

Bisi is survived by her three children, Joan S. Palmer and her husband Ray of Orange, VA and their sons Christopher and Tony; Hugh V.A. Starkey of Brookline and his children Madeleine, Natalie, and Miles; and Alison Starkey and her husband Matt Morozovsky of Portland, OR; and by many nieces, nephews and other extended family. In addition to her beloved George, Bisi was predeceased by her sister, Joan MacM. James, and brother, Dr. Frank G. MacMurray.

The family would like to express their appreciation to the staff and to Bisi's friends at the Brookhaven-at-Lexington community for making her home so comfortable for the past nine years. Great gratitude also goes out to the devoted team in Brookhaven's skilled nursing facility who gave her constant and compassionate care after she suffered a stroke a month ago, with able assistance from Diane McMullin, M.D. and the staff of CareGroup Parmenter Hospice. The many expressions of sympathy from Bisi's friends and acquaintances are also greatly appreciated.

A Memorial Celebration will be held on November 16 at 2:00 p.m. in the auditorium of Brookhaven, 1010 Waltham Street, Lexington, MA, followed by a reception. A later celebration will be held in Norfolk, CT in the summer.

In lieu of flowers, the family encourages donations to the Home for Little Wanderers, 10 Guest Street, Boston, MA 02135, or to the employees' scholarship fund at Brookhaven-at-Lexington.