Marvin J. Murphy

Marvin Junior Murphy, 88, of Apache Junction, Ariz., formerly of Mingo, passed away on June 20, 2016.

Marvin was born in Newton, Aug. 13, 1927, to Loren and Gladys (Kent) Murphy. After graduating from Mingo Community School in 1945, he served in the United States Navy from 1945-1948, participating in Operation Crossroads at the Bikini Atoll, Marshall Islands, to test the effects of the atomic bomb on naval vessels.

In November of 1949, he married Harriet (Hulse) Murphy and began work at the Murphy/DeReus Garage in Mingo, as an auto mechanic. In 1956, he became the director of transportation and drove a bus route for the Mingo Schools. In 1963, he started as a rural mail carrier in Mingo, and later Colfax/Mingo, from which he retired in 1989. His last day on the mail route, he delivered mail one final time from the back of a limousine, accompanied by family and friends. In addition, his “moonlighting” job included fixing, painting or remodeling things for others. If Marvin couldn’t fix it, it was probably unfixable. The entire Murphy family believed in doing things the Murphy Way — which meant, “serving others before self.” Marvin exhibited this by supporting and participating in many community activities, including serving as a school board member, a volunteer fireman and president of the Sun Valley Park Association.

In January of 1992, he married Angela (Kent) Murphy and in 1995, they made their permanent home in Apache Junction, Ariz. Marvin’s skills as the resident handyman continued after retirement, and even when his health forced him to slow down, friends and family continued to seek his expertise on any “fixer-upper” project. He and Angie enjoyed many travels with close friends before her death in August of 2011.

In 2012, Marvin married Verla (Koch) Murphy. They enjoyed dancing at various parks around the Valley and visiting family and friends in Iowa and Colorado. One of his greatest memories included his trip to Washington, D.C. on a World War II Honor Flight in 2013.

Marvin is survived by his wife, Verla; his children and stepchildren, Becky (Ed) Dieleman and Mark (Jean) Murphy, all of Ankeny; Deb DeYoung of Glenwood; Tracy Lewis and Trudy Miller of Greeley, Colo.; a sister-in-law, Beverly Murphy of Cedar Falls; and grandchildren, Tatum (Jon) Buse, Nate (Nicole) Teut, Russ Murphy, Joseph Murphy, Josh DeYoung, Rachel DeYoung, Casey Lynn (Casey Joe) Burton, Justin (Kendra) Koch, Amber DuBois, Damon Miller and Tawny Miller; and 10 great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Angela; two sisters, Reva Lowry and Eva Kling; a brother, Kenneth Murphy; a brother-in-law, Jim Lowry; and a step-daughter, Terry Koch.

A memorial service will be held Saturday, Aug. 27 at 10 a.m. at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, 517 SW Des Moines St., Ankeny, Iowa 50023. Interment will be at the Iowa Veterans Cemetery, Adel.

Memorial contributions may be directed to the family and will be designated to Hospice of the Valley and Arizona Honor Flight.