Clifford R. Murphy Obituary (1926

Clifford Roy Murphy was born June 26, 1926 in Dille, West Virginia. He was the youngest of twelve children born to Henry Owen and Rebecca Mae (Camp) Murphy. He died September 10, 2014 at Stein Hospice in Sandusky after a courageous battle with myelodysplastic syndrome, a type of cancer. Roy was a Navy veteran serving our country in World War II, where he was stationed on an aircraft carrier in the Pacific Ocean. Roy married the love of his life, Emma Jean Kelly, in 1948. They celebrated 66 years of marriage this past March. Roy always wanted to be with Emma Jean and, with the exception of brief hospital stays, they never spent a night apart in their more than six decades of marriage. After the war, Roy worked for several years in the West Virginia coal mines. In 1955, he and Emma Jean moved their family to Oak Harbor, Ohio, where they lived briefly before settling in Clyde, which they happily called home for more than fifty years. Roy was a devoted employee of Ford Motor Company, where he worked as a tow motor driver until retiring in 1983. Throughout his life, Roy owned several Fords and was proud to "buy American". Roy had many passions including Emma Jean's cooking, gardening, Western movies, Cleveland Indians baseball and Mail Pouch tobacco. Roy was well versed in politics and current events, he closely watched gas prices and he loved a good bargain, which he would inevitably use as an excuse to buy things for family and friends. Like many veterans, Roy struggled with alcoholism for several years, but he was sober for the last nearly fifty years of his life and he was a strong supporter of Alcoholics' Anonymous. Roy will be remembered by the many who loved him for his generous heart and his great sense of humor, which stayed with him to his final days. Roy is survived by his wife, Emma Jean, daughter Sada Laurendeau, son-in-law David Laurendeau, son Claude Murphy, grandchildren David Laurendeau, Jr. (Nickie), Amy Laurendeau (Chris Lal), Brandi Skipper (Scott), Deneil Sanchez (Carlos) and Royce Laurendeau, six great-grandchildren, beloved friends Dennis and Cindy Mosier and their children and grandchildren, whom he considered his own, and numerous other family and loved ones far and near. He was preceded in death by his son, Clifford Henry Murphy, his parents and his eleven brothers and sisters. The family will hold a private memorial service and asks that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made to Stein Hospice in honor of Roy's extraordinary life.