Tori Murden

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Victoria Murden McClure (born March 6, 1963[1]) is an explorer who was the first woman to make a solo crossing of the Atlantic Ocean by rowboat. (She claims she is an explorer, but not an "adventurer."[2]) She was also the first woman and first American to ski to the geographic South Pole. She is the president of Spalding University.[3] She is Chair of the Board of the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS).

Early life and education

McClure was born in Brooksville, Florida[1][4] and as a child moved to Connecticut and then to Pennsylvania. At the age of fifteen, she moved in with her grandmother in Louisville, Kentucky to attend the Louisville Collegiate School from which she graduated in 1981. She went on to Smith College, earning a Bachelor's Degree in psychology in 1985. She followed that with a Master of Divinity from Harvard Divinity School in 1989, a J.D. from the University of Louisville School of Law in 1995,[1] and a Master of Fine Arts in writing from Spalding University.[5]

Solo row across the Atlantic

Thirty-six years old at the time,[6] she rowed for eighty-one days, traveling 4,767 kilometres (2,962 mi), starting from the Canary Islands and finishing at Guadeloupe on December 3, 1999. It was her second trip across the Ocean, her first one cut short due to hurricane season in 1998.

She wrote a memoir about her experiences, A Pearl in the Storm: How I Found My Heart in the Middle of the Ocean, published by Collins in 2009. She is also noted for her 700 mile ski across the South Pole

Career

McClure has served as a chaplain at Boston City Hospital, the executive director of a shelter for homeless women, a public policy analyst for the Mayor of Louisville, and she worked for the boxer and humanitarian Muhhamad Ali. On June 1, 2010 she became the president of Spalding University in Louisville, KY.[3] She is the Chair of the Board of the National Outdoor Leadership School.[7]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Rower Victoria Murden". Oceanrowing.com. 1963-03-06. Retrieved 2011-10-13. 
  2. ↑ Pearl in the Storm: Frequently Asked Questions
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Spalding University President Search
  4. ↑ "Tori Murden - An Unprecedented Achievement". Sports.jrank.org. 1999-09-13. Retrieved 2011-10-13. 
  5. ↑ "Political Analyst Rachel Maddow to Deliver 2010 Commencement Address". Smith.edu. Retrieved 2011-10-13. 
  6. ↑ "NOLS - The Leader:". Nols.edu. Retrieved 2011-10-13. 
  7. ↑ "Tori Murden McClure: About the Author: HarperCollins Publishers". Harpercollins.com. 2010-03-24. Retrieved 2011-10-13. 

External links


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