John Robin Murphy

"Eulogy was delivered at St Anthony's Catholic Church Deeragun Townsville. Eulogy delivered by Lisa (John's niece)"

John Robin Murphy was born in Charters Towers on the 27th May 1965 to Lionel and Kathleen Murphy.  The youngest of the Murphy clan, his siblings are Robert, Dennis (deceased), Margaret, Lionel and Michael.  Being the youngest meant by the time John was old enough to do the dishes he had to do them on his own since his siblings had moved out. He was unimpressed with this. John attended primary schools in Mt Isa, Townsville and Charters Towers as his father moved about doing carpentry work. After completing his secondary education at Mount Carmel College, John moved to Melbourne where he gained his trade certificate as a Fitter and Turner.

The cold weather and 'big city' life got the better of John so he packed his gear and moved back to Townsville in 1988.  After several career changes John finally settled in his original trade when he was employed by Transfield and subsequently Qld Nickel at Yabulu Refinery.   

John joked that he won Donna in a raffle. John had won two tickets to dinner and when Donna caught his eye, he asked her out.  Donna and John married two years later in Babinda on 8th January 1994, a day when the temperatures soared to beyond 40 degrees. John commenced work at Goninan this same year and worked long hours as he and Donna worked towards paying off their mortgage on their house in Mt. Louisa. On 26th February 1997, John was overjoyed with the birth of his first son Aaron.  From a very young age John called Aaron "Legend" and Aaron responded with huge smiles for his father. Later that year, John and Donna fell in love with a property on acreage and hence moved to Jensen where John loved being out of town and having space around him. On 5th August 1999, Hayden was born and John was heard singing "I have two sons" in the shower.

In 2001 John commenced work at Qld NickeI where he worked his way up to the position of Major Works Supervisor. John enjoyed the challenges and satisfaction of his job here and we were all proud of his achievements.

In 2002 John and Donna purchased a 4WD with John's vision to show his boys the outback of Australia.  The first family camping trip was to Cobbold Gorge in April 2003 and what an adventure it was roughing it in a tent with no air mattresses. Both Donna and John felt their age in the morning as the hard ground was not kind to their backs. John realised they had much to learn about camping which they did over the next 7 years.  By then John had trained Donna and the boys in setting up and pulling down camp so that the process was down to a fine art. Many fond memories can be recalled of the camping days.

John prided himself on repairing the many things that break down at home. John with his apprentices Donna, Aaron and Hayden pulled up the bore pump using a step ladder, a bit of muscle and a lot of shouting. There was never any giving up and pats on the back were passed around once the job had been achieved. Much money was saved because of John's handiness around the house.  He built bedheads for Aaron and Hayden when they were two years old, with them watching and assisting.  For Donna he built benches in the study for her school work however frequently he joked how she never seemed to have enough room. John passed on his many skills to his boys who now frequently tinker in the shed with Dad's tools.

John has always been a keen cyclist.  As a young junior John had a bad fall right on the finish line at the Charters Towers velodrome and knocked out one of his front teeth.  A vigilant spectator jumped the fence, picked up the tooth and pushed it straight back into the gaping hole.  An action which was later commended by the attending dentist.  From then on John was known as 'Smiley' at cycling around the north.  As a senior cyclist John's most memorable win was the then prestigious Ernie Yates Memorial Race against a star studded field.  In the last few years John has participated in the annual Townsville to Cairns ride raising much needed funds for Children's Cancer. 

John is in heaven now.  He's with his brother Dennis.  I'm sure he is happy there because in heaven there is peace.  John you will be sadly missed by all who knew and loved you. 

John Robin Murphy  27.05.1965 - 01.10.2011