Robert Murphy Obituary

To Bob's family....... I was away on vacation when I heard of the passing of your father, and did not get the chance to attend the service. I volunteered on Mondays' with Bob at Trident Hospital. He was always willing to help in whatever way he could.
My deepest sympathy to you and please know that he will be missed.

Sincerely,

Carol and family,

My sincerest sympathies. Carol, I wish I could be there with you during these trying days. Seek comfort in the Lord.

With condolences and love,
Christina

Carol & Demetra, Our thoughts and prayers are with you at this sad, hard time. Sorry that we were not able to there at this time.

Demetra,
I just read about your dad's passing, I am truly sorrow for your loss. I will keep you in my prayers.

Carol & Demetra,
As we reflect on our shared grief and loss of your Dad's home going, a couple of choice impressions come to mind. Ellie and I were impressed by his great loves...for you, his daughters and for his God. And he talked of his relationship with you and with God frequently. He also loved God’s Word and good poetry, much of which he put to memory. He was always there for whoever needed a helping hand and willingly served even when appropriate recognition was not always given. I recall his motto, "Serving Those Who Serve." It was a portrait of his life. Yet, Bob was a realist as well. With humor he used to say, "The only problem with being a servant is that people treat you like one." I recall talking to Bob about friendship. He wondered how many close friends he had. I reassured him that both Ellie and I indeed considered him among our closest. True close friends can be trusted with not only the pleasantries of life, but also the disappointments, discouragement, failures and the challenges. We had many of each. Bob had a knack for seeing through the problem and the courage to tell it like he saw it. His counsel benefited us immensely in a wide range of issues and situations. And how generous Bob was! He gave of all his resources of time, energy, expertise, and money. He loved to surprise us, like when I walked in and sat down at our computer and suddenly realized that he had just replaced our old outdated one. When we moved to California, Bob paid us a visit and worked tirelessly to help us get set up through additional wiring, assembling several pieces of Ikea furniture and a host of other needed improvements. He also introduced us to his foster mom, Gertrude Haiste, whom we continued to visit for years to follow. Almost without exception when introducing us as her friends, she would go into the story of how obedience to God has lasting results. Her obedience in this case was taking in Bob as a foster child. God rewarded that with Bob's conversion and godly service and our friendship and support as well. Bob has now joined Mrs. Haiste in glory and I can almost picture it now. Gertrude has Bob under tow with his arm tucked in hers leading him from saint to saint repeating that familiar story which we heard many times.
In summary, we consider Bob one of our closest friends. Even when we moved to California, he always made time to meet us when we made periodic treks to the east coast for chaplain conferences. You had a wonderful Dad of whom you can be proud and whose love for you was unsurpassed. We will all miss him.

With our love and condolences,
Gerry & Ellen

Carol and Demetra, we will miss Your Dad's visits and emails. His friendship was cherished. We considered him part of our family.