Birth date: Sep 9, 1931 Death date: Apr 26, 2022
James A Murphy, 90, of Palmetto,FL, passed away Tuesday, April 26, 2022, in Bradenton, FL after a long illness. He was born Sept 9th in Syracuse, NY, to Eugene F Murphy and Susan (Leinwand) Murphy who predeceased him. Also decease Read Obituary
Always the engineer forever in our hearts.- “When the winds of change blow, some people build walls and others build windmills.” Chinese Proverb - In loving memory.
After receiving the sad news about Uncle Jim, I went to the photo “vault” to search for some visual memories to help me process. Among the photos was an old book titled: History of the name Murphy. As I flipped through the pages, I came to the Origins of the Surname Murphy. In Irish O Murchadha means strong or superior.
How well matched Uncle Jim was to that ancient name meaning. He was a force larger than life to his personal family, and to his extended family and friends. A bigger heart you will never find and even after a major repair his heart would always keep on giving. From the time and attention he devoted to family, friends, and faith, you would never conceive of how he also had time for a profession and preferred activities.
Uncle Jim had a family of his own and yet somehow had the capacity to always be an amazing and thoughtful brother to his siblings and their spouses as I witnessed throughout my lifetime by his devotion to my mother Eileen, and his unbelievable kindness to my father Dick, throughout his lifetime.
On a personal level he was my idol. I wanted to be just like him. I would often contrive and cajole my mom to plan activities that involved getting to see him. Although my ultimate path was quite different, I could always count on his wisdom and support. We had many interesting discussion about THE world, my world, and faith. “Colleen”, he would say, “ Even the Lord’s Prayer says thy will be done.” “Yes, Uncle Jim, but I don’t have to like it.” And his head would softly shake before he’d offer a hug. One of my mom’s biggest compliments to me as an adult was that my insistence on punctuality and organization was “you are just like my brother Jim!!”
I will treasure so many memories with and about Uncle Jim: Wolf Lake, fishing, snowmobiling, dragging in the dock at Otisco on a cold day, coffee in the Lowe Ave kitchen, Christmas sleigh rides, and Thanksgiving at Lake Shore Country Club. He was so dependable for me and Aunt Edrie, Mark, Matt, John, and Susie, his grandchildren, and for anyone who was lucky enough to know him.
The last time I saw him was quintessential Uncle Jim. Upon arriving for lunch at a Sarasota restaurant, I told the hostess that we were meeting family. She smiled and said, “You must be the school principal- your uncle is so proud of you!”
In turn, I will always be so proud to have been one of his nieces.
May your heart be warm and happy
With the lilt of Irish laughter
Every day in every way
And forever and ever after
To the family of Jim,
Although I do not know any of you, I did work many projects with Jim at R & W.
As a matter of fact , I used to request Jim and certain trades engineers for my projects at King & King Architects over the years. You could depend on Jim to step up to the situation.
May GOD, who calls our dear ones home, be ever close to you, may he enfold you with his love and send you comfort too.
WITH SYMPATHY
RUSSELL GOODEN
Winston Salem, NC.
To the Murphy family, With My deepest sympathy and a prayer. Jim was a great guy and a friend to many. Sincerely, Jack
