Obituary of Ruth I. Murphy

Ruth I. Murphy of Duxbury passed away peacefully on Saturday, June 11 at Life Care Center of Plymouth at the age of 81. She was the wife of the late David R. Murphy. She was the devoted mother of Cynthia and Al Hibler of Duxbury, Carol and Barry Kallander of Bolton, Carla and George Bailey of Sandwich, and Neil and Elaine Murphy of Kingston. Ruth was also the proud grandmother of Sarah, Alex, Nathaniel, Brendan, Pia, Thomas, Lindsay, Bradford, Gregory, and Elizabeth and two great-grandchildren, Owen and Tyler, and she had many nieces and nephews. She is survived by her brother, Robert Belyea, of Saugus and her sister, Lois Kelly, of Albuquerque, New Mexico. Ruth was born December 19, 1929, in Saugus to the late Reginald and Freda (Rankin) Belyea. After graduating from Saugus High School, Ruth worked at the New England Trust Company in Boston. David and Ruth moved to Duxbury in 1958 and she became a life-long supporter of the Duxbury School system. She was the number one fan of the Duxbury High School baseball team that her husband coached for 34 years. Ruth worked at the Duxbury Intermediate School serving as the Science Department teacher’s aide for many years. She also worked at the Duxbury Town Hall for several years. She enjoyed her summer work at Howard’s Flowers in Kingston. Ruth was an active volunteer and spent many years delivering Meals on Wheels. Ruth was a member of the American Legion Women’s Auxiliary Post 223 of Duxbury and Eastern Star of Duxbury. She was a 50 year member of the High Street United Methodist Church where she taught Sunday School and served on a variety of committees. She spear-headed the Campbell soup “Labels for Education” drive to benefit a mission in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Ruth enjoyed spending her summers at Pleasant Mountain Camping Area in Maine with her family. She also enjoyed bowling, singing, cows and bingo. Visiting hours will be held Wednesday, June 15th at Shepherd Funeral Home 216 Main St. (Rt 106) Kingston from 4-8 pm. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, June 18th at 11:00 am at the High Street United Methodist Church with the burial following at Mayflower Cemetery in Duxbury. Donations can be made to the American Legion Women’s Auxiliary Post 223, PO Box 1113, Duxbury, MA 02331 or the Memorial Funds of High Street United Methodist Church.