John "Dave" David Murphy

John David Murphy – known by all as David or Dave since childhood – died peacefully on September 15th at the Anna Mae Owen Hospice House in Murray, Kentucky surrounded by his loving family. David was born in Jamaica, Queens, New York, on December 4, 1941, three days before the bombing of Pearl Harbor but in some circles, equally noteworthy. He attended Holy Cross High School in Bayside, Queens. At Georgetown University he received a bachelor’s degree in history and English with a minor in philosophy, followed by an MBA from Drexel University. 

David started his career at Merck in 1965 as a pharmaceutical representative, and quickly moved up the corporate structure. He was named director of international personnel, moving his young family to England for three and a half years, then re-settling in Princeton Junction, New Jersey. He retired from Merck in 1993, and began a new career as an independent consultant. Eventually retiring for real, David and his wife relocated to Murray, Kentucky.

David’s greatest joy was without doubt his three daughters and his wife. A devout Catholic, he was a Eucharistic minister, a lecturer, and the director of RCIA. David enjoyed military movies and books, building model ships and planes, and teaching his grandchildren about dinosaurs and history. He loved a good joke and his girls inherited his contagious smile and tearful laughter. He was a big man in size, presence, and heart. David was predeceased by his eldest daughter, Frances Robb Murphy. David is survived by his wife of 59 years, Mary Jo, his daughter Elizabeth Porter (Adam) of Washington DC, his daughter Megan Smetana (ZB/Zbynek), and his four amazing grandchildren John, Thomas, Catherine, and Sean.
A funeral mass will be held at 12:00 p.m., Friday, September 19, 2025, at the St. Leo Catholic Church in Murray, Kentucky with Father Josh McCarty officiating. Burial will follow in the Murray City Cemetery. There will be no public visitation held before the funeral mass.
Online condolences can be made at, www.jhchurchill.com