Sharon Murphy

Sharon Rose Murphy, 48, of Kirksville unexpectedly went to be with her Savior on Sunday (April 21, 2019) at the University of Missouri Hospital in Columbia, Missouri. Her loving husband of 23 years was by her side.

The daughter of Oscar Jay and Diane Swanson, she was born on March 21st, 1971 in Van Nuys, California. On December 30th, 1995 she was married to her college sweetheart, John Murphy. She is survived by her 5 deeply loved children; 2 sons, Ethan and Elijah; and 3 daughters, Lily, Isabel, and Kaysha.

Sharon is also survived by her parents; husband, brother Steven Swanson, sisters Shelly Thomas and Susan Swanson, 3 nephews and 3 nieces; her in-laws, Charles and Jo-Ann Murphy, sister-in-law, Laura Murphy, and brother and sister-in-law, Randy and Linda Murphy.

During her childhood, Sharon’s family moved to several communities in the state of Utah. In 1989 Sharon graduated high school from Open Door Academy in Magna, Utah. In 1994 she graduated from Cedarville College in Cedarville, Ohio with a Bachelor’s degree in criminal justice. After marrying John in 1995, they settled in Kirksville where she soon accepted a job for the State of Missouri as a Probation and Parole officer. In 2000, She, John, and their infant son, Ethan, moved to Bethany, Missouri where she began the arduous career of being a fantastic wife, a mother, and running a household. By 2004, the family grew by adding Lily and Isabel, and they moved back to Kirksville, where they reside to this day. Since moving back to Kirksville, the family wonderfully grew more with the addition of Elijah and Kaysha.

Sharon considered it her divine appointment to be a humble servant of Christ, at which her Lord gifted her immensely. Her unconditional love was the glue that held together a bustling household, and she constantly put the needs of others in front of her own. She worked tirelessly to show the love of Jesus to young mothers and children in the community, to the widow, the orphan, but also had an unquenchable thirst to reach the lost with the Gospel. Sharon was a beautiful, godly woman in every sense of the word. This world is a poorer place without her.

Visitation with the family will be from 10:00 to 11:30 a.m. Saturday (April 27, 2019) at Davis-Playle-Hudson-Rimer Funeral Home. A graveside service will follow the visitation at Park View Memorial Gardens.

Memorials in memory of Sharon are suggested to Rapha House Ministries.