Obituary of Lois May Murphy

MURPHY, Lois (nee Armstrong)

Peacefully, with her family by her side, at the age of 91, Lois passed away on Saturday, August 17^th.  Pre-deceased by her husband of 60 years, Les, she leaves behind her three sons, Larry (Debbie), Brian (Sherry) and Doug (Lori), her six grandchildren, Dan, Brendan (Ellen), Adam, Megan (Kris), Sara and Bradley (Rachel), and her two great-grandchildren, Luke and Alice. 

Lois lived her entire life in Binbrook. She was the only child of Irene and Harvey Armstrong and was born into the very centre of the tiny hamlet where her parents operated the General Store. Armstrong’s provided the rural community with all the staples – groceries, clothing, hardware, appliances, gasoline, and animal feed – as well as acting as the social centre for the community with a telephone and the area’s first television. She worked for her parents in the store until, and after, she and Les married and started their family on the farm on Guyatt Road. Eventually the store property was expropriated for road widening and she and Les retained the animal feed business on the farm, proudly flying the Purina banner.

Lois was a proud supporter of her community and a proud supporter of her family, passions she combined together as she and Les travelled untold miles and spent uncountable days of cheering their boys and the community’s sports teams all over Ontario and Canada. As the years passed the enthusiasm didn’t wane, it was transferred down a generation to her grandchildren and their endeavours. She was an active member in the community, lending a hand wherever necessary.  She knit countless tiny toques, mittens and booties for ICU babies, along with dozens of tiny blankets.  Lois being Lois meant that each stitch was perfect, and the colors were glorious.

She was an avid recorder of the history of Binbrook, collecting and reading any written history of the community, sharing that with others, and adding her own recollections to the record. She applied a similar zeal to researching the genealogy of her family. With both subjects she became the go-to source for the answers to all questions on heritage.

She was amazed by the growth of her little town, proud that her family remained part of it and contributed to that growth. Armstrong’s General Store became Armstrong Feeds/ Hardware and Armstrong Milling wild bird feed. The small farm that she and Les started became Murphy’s Country Produce.

The last few years of her life were challenging and it was a tough day when she had to move from her home in Binbrook. It was a happy development when they built Summit Heights in Elfrida - that was about as far as we she was going to go from home. She enjoyed her time there and was happiest when she had visitors, particularly family. Visits from Megan, who ensured that she didn’t lack for anything, and Ellen and Brendan with Luke and Alice were highlights of her week. She was amazed and totally enthralled with having great-grandchildren.

The family would like to acknowledge the respect, care, and compassion shown by the staff at the Juravinski Hospital Emergency Unit during her final days.

A private family burial will take place.  Should anyone wish to make a donation on Lois’s behalf, it would be greatly appreciated if the donation would be made to her favourite charities -  either Ronald McDonald House Charities or Glanbrook Community Services. Online condolences may be left at www.donaldvbrown.ca