Daniel J. Murphy Sr., 90, died peacefully in Galesburg, Illinois surrounded by his family on March 17, 2019. He was born November 14, 1928 in Lansing, Iowa, the son of Cyril Murphy and Irene Jochum Murphy. He married Anne Marie Kerndt in Waukon in 1952. She preceded him in death in 1986 after 30 years of marriage.
Dan was raised in Lansing and graduated from Immaculate Conception High School in 1946. Shortly after graduating he volunteered to serve in the US Army and served honorably in the Korean War, being discharged in 1948. After the war, he attended Loras College in Dubuque. Dan and Anne courted, were engaged and wed in 1952. Dan worked for his father at the John Deere garage before finding work as a pipe fitter in North Dakota. He returned for Anne and six-month-old Michael, returning with them to North Dakota. Six months later, in 1955, they followed work to Colorado Springs. He worked on oil refineries, the Air Force Academy and the Broadmoor World Arena. Patrick was born in 1957 and Mark in 1959.
After living in Colorado for ten years, Dan moved the family back to Lansing around 1965. He continued to work on the road with his family staying in Lansing. In 1963, Dan Jr. was born in Waukon and in 1966 the twins, Meg and Molly, were born in La Crosse, WI. Dan enjoyed working on many large construction projects including the Heileman’s Brewery and numerous hospitals.
After working for over thirty years as a pipe fitter, many of those years on the road, away from his family, Dan retired to try his hand at running his own business. In 1981, he opened the Bumper to Bumper auto parts store. Dan and Anne enjoyed quiet mornings together running the store as he sold parts and she kept the books. Once Anne was diagnosed with cancer, Dan did not enjoy running the store without Anne at his side. In 1986 his bride of thirty-five years lost her battle with cancer and four years later, in 1990, he permanently retired.
For the next fifteen years Dan enjoyed golfing and participating in VFW activities. He shared a winter home close to Harvey Halverson in Lakeland, FL with his brother Babe. Dan spent much of his time traveling to Galesburg and Peoria before moving to Galesburg in 2005. Throughout his life, he had a soft spot in his heart for young children and babies. Dan enjoyed teasing each one of his grandchildren, often convincing them to get him some ice cream.
Daniel is survived by three sons, Michael (and Deena) Murphy of Peoria, IL, Mark (and Janine) Murphy of Ft. Wayne, IN and Daniel (and Shannon) Murphy of Springfield, VA; two daughters, Meg (and Wayne) Carl of Galesburg, IL and Molly Murphy of Virginia Beach, VA; a brother, Cyril “Babe” (and Shirley “Peach”) Murphy of Edina, MN; a sister, Rosanne Murphy of Harpers Ferry, IA; thirteen grandchildren and one great granddaughter.
He was preceded in death by his parents; a son, Patrick, in 1962; his brother, Robert, in 1982 and his sister, Mary, in 1988.
Visitation will be held from 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm on Friday, March 22, 2019 at Thornburg-Grau Funeral Home and Cremation Service in Lansing, Iowa. There will also be a one hour visitation before Mass at the church on Saturday.
Mass of Christian Burial will be at 10:30 am on Saturday, March 23, 2019 at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, Lansing, Iowa with Rev. John Moser and Msgr. Ed Lechtenberg as the concelebrants.
Burial at Gethsemane Cemetery with Military Rites.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in memoriam to the Knox County (IL) Right to Life organization, P.O. Box 1462, Galesburg, IL 61402.
Thornburg-Grau Funeral Home and Cremation Service of Lansing, Iowa is helping the family with arrangements.