After watching the sunrise on the morning of September 3rd, Victor Lee Murphey took his last breath, closed his eyes and left this world. After nearly 102 years stuffed full of life, love, and adventure; Victor passed away peacefully in his home.
Vic was born on November 24th, 1921 as the second child to his parents Stephen Samuel and Vera Vesta (Crow) Murphey. His first years were spent working with his siblings on their small rural farm and, if later life is any indication, playing endless games of horseshoes and tormenting each other. A move to Craigmont brought new opportunities (and electricity!) to the family. Always willing to try new things, Vic was drawn into playing on the football and basketball teams, as well as the band, playing clarinet and, if family legend is correct, the tuba. His musical career may have never taken off, but clarinet playing must be in the Murphey genes, and is now in its fourth generation.
The war years saw him with the Army Signal Corps, always the top man on the telephone pole, posing for photos for national marketing campaigns. In between, he strung vital communication lines and set up information systems for the ever-moving front line. He turned down a Purple Heart when his ear was shot off; with four sons on active duty, he didn’t want to worry his mom.
As the war ended, he returned to his family, who had now moved to Prosser, Washington. There, Victor and his brothers helped their dad start up the ACM Feed store that anchored the skyline of Prosser for decades. In 1955 he met Ella Midland, who he married on September 14th, and then shared his life, as well as his mischievous smile and faux-repentant eyebrow shrug, with her for more than 65 years until she passed in 2021. Together they raised two daughters, Teri and Wendy, on their ten acres along the Yakima River in Prosser.
It shouldn’t be surprising that a person can fit a lot of living in 100 years, but Vic was extraordinary. Honestly, there was nothing that he couldn’t do if he tried it. He made homemade ice cream and Jello cheesecake; wind chimes from irrigation pipe; learned to fly a plane; hiked; skied; fished (though he much preferred to fish in nice weather, no matter that the fish bite better when it rains); rodeoed with his brothers;, learned welding for farmwork, then used it to make small “city chicken” sculptures; raised cattle (calves were his favorite); golfed with Ella, then Wendy, then Stuart; could fix anything you brought him with mismatched screws from his parts bins, and always had the best stories to tell.
A poet once wrote; “Death does not separate us, death unites. It is life that separates us”. Victor’s long life has meant an untold number of separations from people he met along the way: coworkers, peers, fellow-soldiers, neighbors and his many heartfelt friends. We know that Vic is reunited with Ella now, as well as his parents, brothers, sisters, countless friends, and beloved horses that have gone before. We miss him dreadfully, but know that he'll be watching over us always. We may be separated from him for a time, but he will always be near us.
Vic is now with his beloved wife, father and mother, as well as his three brothers, Jim (Clayton James), Bill (Stephen Wayne), and Bob (Robert Leroy), and three sisters Maxine Evelyn, Rita Floy, and Lita Joy. Life has dictated that the rest of us must stay behind and endure the separation from Victor. Those left behind include his daughters Teri and Wendy, along with their spouses Albert and Tom; six grandchildren: Toni, Randi, Stuart, Jaci, Olivia, and Claire; as well as nine great-grandchildren, and a score of nieces and nephews.
Death does not separate us, death unites. The death of this wise and wonderful man unites all of us in grief and mourning. We will gather for a graveside service on Wednesday, September 13th, 11am at the Prosser Cemetery. You may share a memory at Prosserfuneralhome.com