Mary Kaye (Kalbfleisch) Murphy

Mary Kaye (Katherine) Murphy, 88, passed away Sunday, December 18, 2016. She was surrounded by loving family.

A rosary will be held at 6:45 p.m., Wednesday, December 21 ^st , followed by a prayer vigil at 7:00 p.m., and funeral mass will be 11:00 a.m., Thursday, December 22 ^nd , all to be held at St. Margaret’s Catholic Church in Cut Bank.

Mary Kaye was born May 23, 1928 in Shelby, MT to Norman & Virginia (Johnson) Kalbfleisch, the third of six children. She spent much of her childhood on the family farm east of Shelby, near Dunkirk. She graduated from Shelby High School in 1946. Mary Kaye graduated as a Registered Nurse from the Columbus Hospital School of Nursing in 1949, and she started her nursing career at the Glacier County Medical Center in Cut Bank. She met and fell in love with John Edward (Jack) Murphy. Jack asked her to trade-in her name for one she could spell, so on October 14, 1950, they became united in marriage. Her nursing career was put on hold for several years when she got busy raising a family, really busy! Over a span of 4 years and 5 months, she gave birth to her first six children, which included back-to-back sets of twins; and three more children followed. When her kids reached school age, she returned to full-time nursing for another ~25 years.

Mom was known for her exceptional cooking and baking skills. Pasties were a family favorite, and her homemade bread was second to none. The Murphy home became a popular place to “visit” during bread baking days.

Mom spent nearly two decades following all her kids’ sporting activities, which included wrestling, cross country, track, and any other sport in which her children chose to compete. She was well known fan of the Cut Bank Wolves and tremendous supporter of all her kids.

The Murphy family spent a great deal of time in and around Glacier National Park. Mom absolutely loved the outdoors. She especially enjoyed hiking trails in Glacier, cross-country skiing, and whitewater rafting. She never backed down from a water fight during rafting trips on the middle fork of the Flathead or the Missouri River. In fact, she started most of them, and she was a true marksman. Fellow rafters quickly realized not to turn their back to Mary Kaye.

While Mom had many special qualities, she was likely best known as a loving and compassionate caregiver. To the many patients at the Glacier County Medical Center, she provided exceptional care. As our mother, she shared a special relationship with each of her children, providing unwavering support, and she never failed to let us know how much she loved and appreciated each of us. As a devoted, caring wife, she gave our father 48 years of wonderful marriage, and she tirelessly cared for him during his lengthy struggle with dementia. During retirement, Mom spent many days volunteering at the hospital, preparing and serving meals at the Senior Center, and caring for ailing friends and relatives.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Jack; siblings Bob, Jean (Genore), Rae, and Sally; and her son-in-law, Terry Losey, with whom she shared a very special bond.

She is survived by brother, Jim (Virginia); children, Danny (Michelle), Janis Dolan (Rob), Tim, Tom (Carol), Sallie Losey, Sherrie, Mary Pat, Todd (Charmaine), and Joe (Janell); twenty grandchildren; fifteen great-grandchildren; and numerous nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, donations are suggested to Poor Clares Sisters of Montana, 3020 18 ^th Ave S, Great Falls, MT  59405. And in Mom’s words, “Go out and be kind to others.”