In 1975, Polly Murray of Lyme, Connecticut, called the State Department of Health to report an unusual pattern of symptoms affecting her family and her community, and listed over 40 cases of what would come to be known as Lyme disease.

For the next 20 years, she worked hard to bring attention and help to people suffering from the tick-borne illness. In 1996, she published a book about the experience called “The Widening Circle.”

On July 16, Murray passed away at the age of 85.

According to an obituary in the New Haven Register & Shoreline Times, “Polly was known for her love of her family and friends, and for her fierce determination to overcome any obstacles in her path and to help others do the same. She received phone calls from people all over the country and the world, and it was her greatest satisfaction to provide the support they needed and connect them to Lyme disease clinicians and best practices. In addition to her bouts with Lyme disease, Polly lived for more than fifteen years after she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.”

Click here to read the entire obituary.