October 6, 1936 — October 26, 2024
William “Bill” J. Murphy, 88, of Greenville, Ohio, passed away on Saturday, October 26, 2024, at the Brethren Retirement Community in Greenville.
Bill was born on October 6, 1936, in Greenville, to the late Elvin and Claudia (Hostetler) Murphy.
In addition to his parents, Bill was preceded in death by his wife, Ruth Alice (Spotts) Murphy, and his siblings, Mary Murphy, Tom Murphy, and Jerry Murphy.
Bill is survived by his sons, Michael (Annie) Murphy of Greenville, and Timothy (Theresa) Murphy of Marysville, Washington; his grandchildren, Marina Frye, Michael (Aubrey) Murphy, Matthew (Marsha) Murphy, Jessica Murphy, Kameron (Casey Baker) West, Harley (Hunter Miller) West, Tristan (Autumn Paul) Frye; his great grandchildren, Makayla, Ethan, Owen, Eden, Josie, Jonah, Ephram, Morning, and Meadow; his great-great grandchildren, Willow, Emerson, and Lincoln; and his sister, Susie (Jim) Oswalt of Greenville.
Bill was a graduate of Westmont High School in Hollansburg, Ohio. He studied engineering at Sinclair Community College and eventually worked as a process engineer for Corning Glass after working his way up from sweeping floors, operating a glass press, and serving as a machinist/technician. He worked at Corning in the plant in Greenville Ohio until he retired after more than 30 years of service.
Bill was a devoted husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather and great-great-grandfather, friend and mentor to a large family and extended family that loved him dearly. He was an enthusiastic amateur thespian who performed in many productions by the Darke County Civic Theater and the Oakland Church of the Brethren. In his free time, Bill enjoyed canoeing, especially racing canoes at which he excelled. Another of Bill’s passions was Spelunking (exploring caves) at which he became very skilled. He passed along his passion by teaching spelunking to young people in church camps dedicated to that purpose. He was a member of the National Speleological Society, a group dedicated to protecting, studying, and exploring caves. Later in life he became an avid bird watcher and member of the National Audubon Society. Bill was a proud cancer survivor for the last 30 years of his life.
A celebration of life will be held at a time to be announced,
Memorial contributions may be given to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place Memphis, TN 38105.
Online condolences may be shared with the family by visiting www.tributefuneralhomes.com.