An overflowing crowd gathered on Northern Kentucky University’s campus Wednesday to mourn the passing of student Murry Foust.

Friends and family hugged each other to comfort one another during the memorial. There was not one dry eye in the crowd.

Every seat was filled to hear memories of Foust from family, friends and staff. People who could not get a seat stood behind the chairs and in the balcony looking over Corbett Lobby.

To the right of the podium was Foust’s BFA Integrative Media and Spatial Arts degree with a focus in both painting and spatial arts. To the left was a drawing of Foust with pottery beside it. 

President Cady Short-Thompson thanked everyone for showing up for the Foust family these last few weeks, as people searched for the missing student before their body was found on May 24. 

“I am deeply honored to join this community to celebrate Murry Foust, a beloved student and NKU graduate who is gone much too soon,” Short-Thompson said. “We are all heartbroken, crestfallen at this tragic loss of one of our precious students, and I know so many in this room are grieving this evening.”

She described Murry Foust as a “remarkable person and talented artist who embodied the true essence of an NKU student and School of the Arts creator.”

Short-Thompson said she has learned much about Murry Foust in these last few weeks. About the impact they had on their friends’ lives and loved ones with friendship, art and, “just being Murry,” a phrase Short-Thompson said she keeps hearing.

Those who knew Murry Foust best remember their amazing artistic talents, but also for being a gentle and kind soul, Short-Thompson said.

Foust had a deep love for the arts – for pottery, poetry and painting that “brought life and color to this campus and community around us.” 

Along with art, Murry Foust was a guitarist and pianist, along with being a singer and songwriter. 

“Simply put, Murry was dedicated to sharing art with this world, and we are better for it,” Short-Thompson said. 

Short-Thompson acknowledged that this is a terrible time for everyone and “the whole NKU community grieves with you, and we will always remember Murry as one of our own.” 

Director of the School of the Arts (SOTA) program, which  Foust was a part of, Matthew Albritton, noted that each person who knew Foust held a different piece of the whole picture. 

“What I keep hearing again and again from students, faculty, staff, friends, family is that every one of those pieces was unique, it was brilliant, and it shone very bright,” he said. 

Albritton said Murry Foust reminded him of a quote that he heard from the show ‘Ted Lasso’ that said, ‘Be curious, not judgemental.’” 

Students looked to Murry Foust for mentorship and got it in many ways, Albritton said,  whether it was casual comments in the studios or constructive criticism given during hard critiques; Murry Foust wanted to make everyone around him better. 

Sculpture professor Gary Surbanavitz recounted Foust as a “gifted individual who displayed an irrepressible passion for making work that was infused with a compelling vision based on their understanding of the cultural moment and their own personal history.” 

Murry Foust was always excited to show discoveries and creative pursuits with professors and classmates, he said. Surbanavitz remembers being pulled aside many times to be shown a “new and exciting eureka moment in their work.” 

Gallery Director Paige Weitman, who worked alongside Murry Foust and the BFA graduating seniors to put their capstone exhibition in the galleries a few weeks ago, talked about their time with Foust. 

Murry Foust took a genuine interest in the creation their classmates were working on, told them how amazing what they were working on

was, and shared as much of their story as possible, Weitman said.

In the weeks leading up to their opening reception, Murry Foust provided a supportive presence constantly. 

“As with all good artists, Murry was curious about the world, curious about art, past and present, curious about how art connects people, how it expresses something real, how it teaches,” Weitman said. 

Murry Foust shared that curiosity and helped others continue to stay curious about their work and about their life paths without judgement. 

In the NKU Fine Arts Center, there is an exhibit of Foust’s work that will be up through September. 

Albritton encourages everyone to stop by and “be with the work, be with what Murry put into it, the energy, the heart, the ideas, the passion, the thought. Be with the positive memories that you have, and let them remain present with you as you move forward. Be with the loss of a shining light that we all miss so very much, and be there for each other, and maybe try to carry this with you.” 

Murry Foust’s older sister, Lindsey Foust, offered her appreciation for everyone’s support. 

“I really thank you from a very deep place in my heart, bringing genuine friends to worry for, loving our family through the hardest days, and to NKU for making the space for all of us to celebrate the life of a very beautiful soul,” Lindsey Foust said. 

She reflected on how proud she was of Murry Foust and always bragged about them. She knew they were always special from a young age. 

“[The] Kind of person animals and children were just very magnetized to, whose art just flowed with different times being were just wise beyond their years,” Lindsey Murry Foust said.

She described Murry Foust as a shining star and was infinitely creative, gentle-hearted and kind inside and out. 

She recalled when they would sleep in the same bed even when they were teenagers. They would swim in the pool with their brother Austin during summer breaks. They would play “dinosaur” and ride on their dad’s back. 

The three children would perform a song for their mom, play in the creek with their grandpa and paint with their grandma. There would be times, though, when they would just lie in the sun and say nothing. 

“Murry always felt things deeply. They were the type of person who was always trying to include someone new, and I never once felt alone,” Lindsey Murry Foust said. 

She remembered her freshman year at UC when Murry Foust would come up and visit her. Murry Foust would see her on family weekends or during random Friday sleepovers, joining her to volunteer.

“We fed each other’s spirits. Murry always inspired me to be more creative, lean into new perspectives,” Lindsey Foust said.

Her voice broke, and tears began to fall as she talked about the future Murry Foust could have had and when they would discuss on the phone their dreams of getting a master’s degree and being an art teacher or maybe just traveling the world. Murry Foust talked about seeing their art shown at the Cincinnati Art Museum. 

“I think a lot of these plans, and how each and every one of us fit into them, and my heart hurts; there will forever be a hole,” Lindsey Foust said. “An empty seat at my parents’ kitchen table, a painfully empty childhood bedroom, an empty locker, a happy new canvas, a voicemail box that I fear getting full all the time, songs I really miss hearing you sing.”

Lindsey Foust now knows that Murry Foust’s  artwork will forever be frozen in time, but together, as we will look at each other’s pieces, we will begin to “put things back together in our own ways and remember that we all loved our moment in time, our special place with the same soul.” 

She said Murry Foust “left fingerprints everywhere.” She said she feels so proud of the person Murry Foust became, a person whose “light always shone very bright.” 

A favorite quote of Murry Foust’s was: “The reason we are alive is to express ourselves in this world.” 

Looking into the crowd in front of her and above at the balcony, Lindsey Foust spoke out to Murry Foust’s friends or anyone who may feel alone, saying they will always have a big sister in her who will always be cheering them on and thinking of them daily. 

Murry Foust’s passing has taught her to “hug each other a little longer and a little closer,” Lindsey Foust said. 

“Tell your friends and tell your family really how much you love them. Make art, check in on your strong friends, text your parents back, listen to somebody’s story, dance really slow down, believe in a more peaceful world, watch the sunset, and then make art again.”

Painting professor, Kevin Muente, described Foust as “always thinking outside the box” and always bringing dreams and ideas to reality. 

“A vibrancy and an adaptability that Murry had in spades was continuously witnessed in the studio,” Muente said. 

Murry Foust had a thirst for learning, he said.

“Murry’s soul was strong, eager to tackle new problems and develop interesting solutions, solutions that only could be made by the mind of Murry,” Muente said. 

He recalled a time when Murry Foust came up with an idea to infuse the gallery space with cloves, some sort of perfume and lavender a few hours before their senior exhibition. 

The class commented on the super scented air, describing it as “air freshener on steroids.” Muente said that people could probably smell it to this day if he didn’t shut it down right away because it did not connect with the overall concept of the exhibition. 

“Those of us that knew Murry know that they poured themselves into whatever they set their minds to,” Muente said. 

Some examples would be face painting, goth, artwork, helping others, music, asking questions, rocking out, wearing a dress, wearing a suit, caring for the environment, being strong, being vulnerable and caring for humans and critters alike. 

He looked back on a time when Murry Foust was able to push some of the class out for a few hours of fun bowling, even though most of them were terrible. 

“Whatever pronoun, whatever name you may have known, Murray Foust, she, he, they, they were a good human being, a good person, a person that wanted the best for the world. Thank you, Murry,” Muente said.

After everyone finished talking about their memories of Murry Foust, their parents came up to receive their degree, tears flowing down their faces.

“I ask everybody again, just take a moment and look around and feel the love and community in this room,” Albritton said. 

SOTA has opened a scholarship in memory of Murry Foust; more information will be released about how to contribute moving forward.