JEANNETTE EMILY MURPHY

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JEANNETTE EMILY MURPHY We honour a great lady and applaud a life well-lived. Jeannette, the daughter of hard-working Polish immigrants, began life as Genowefa Tront on September 16, 1925 on a farm in Highland Glen, Manitoba. She married Patrick Murphy in June 1941 and together they raised six children. She was widowed in 1989 and continued to be a vital force in the lives of her many offspring. Her intelligence, sense of humour, disarming honesty and amazing fortitude won the admiration of all who knew her as mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister, aunt and friend. We gave her what turned out to be a wonderful send-off when she turned 95 this past September. Not long after she became ill and eventually hospitalized, a difficult time that was mercifully cut short by her peaceful death on Sunday, January 9, 2011. Her welcoming committee in Heaven includes her parents John and Mary; siblings Stan and Helen; husband Pat, daughter Kathleen; daughter-in-law Paula; son-in-law Richard; grandchildren Leah and Mark. Left to carry on her legacy are her children Theresa (Pius Burke), Maureen (Terry Greenwood), Michael (Paula Betuzzi), Janie, Colleen (Rod Gilhuly); grandchildren Andrea, Christine, Quentin, Chris, Megan, Suzanne, Kathryn, Trisha, Paul, Michael, Eamon, Sarah, Katie, Oliver, Stella, Sean, Colin, Connor and Reilly; as well as sisters Vi and Fran, Betty Rutherford; good friend of 81 years and many great-grandchildren; nieces and nephews. Those of us who are left will have a huge hole in our lives but also hearts full of gratitude for the gift of such a long and fruitful life. We will be challenged to emulate her many qualities and accomplishments, notably her devotion to family for whom she made enormous sacrifices throughout her life, her insatiable curiosity which found expression in her love of travel and of reading, her formidable knowledge and respect for family history, her great sense of fun which persisted until the end. Each time we gather to make perogies her spirit will live on in our midst. Mass of Christian Burial will be Celebrated on Friday, January 14, 2011 at 10:00 a.m. in Holy Cross Roman Catholic Church, 252 Dubuc Street with Rev. Fr. Martin Bradbury, presiding. Our thanks go out to her many kind caregivers from Home Care, St. Boniface Hospital and Riverview Health Centre. If you wish, please direct donations to either of Jeannette's favourite charities - Siloam Mission, 300 Princess Street, Winnipeg, MB R3B 1M3 or Jocelyn House, 177 Egerton Road, Winnipeg, MB R2M 2W7.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Jan 12, 2011