Mary Leah Murphy passed away at Carlton Memory Care in Pleasant Hill, CA from natural causes and Parkinson’s Disease on February 2, 2023, she was 76.

She was born on February 2, 1947, in Berkeley, CA to Donald Andrew Robarge and Bertha Esther Franz. She was one of three siblings to Don and “Franzie”. A lifelong resident to the San Francisco Bay Area, Mary spent most of her formative years in San Lorenzo in the “Village.”

Growing up in the Village in the 1950’s was idealistic, as there was always a neighborhood friend around the corner to hang out with. She stayed in touch with some of these lifelong friends well into her adulthood. There was also a boy around the corner, Jay Murphy, whom she would marry in 1965, they were married for 34 years. They had two children Jennifer, born in 1968 and Jeff, born in 1970. Once the kids were born, Mary put her sewing skills to work and made clothes for the entire family at their home in Castro Valley, CA. Mary would later have an at home alterations business for several years. In 1979 she and her family moved to San Ramon, CA where she started work for the San Ramon Valley Unified School District in the food service industry as a part time employee. As her kids got older, her work hours got longer and she spent 25 years with S.R.V.U.S.D., primarily assigned to Charlotte Wood middle school.

Mary was always very active in her life and in her community and hardly ever sat still. She spent countless hours manicuring the yard, gardening, salsa dancing and was part Aerobics craze of the 80’s. She learned to snow ski with her kids when they were little and spent 10 years skiing as a family in the Lake Tahoe area. During this time there were countless camping trips and swim meets with her kids. In the early 1990’s she discovered cycling; this was her new passion. For the next 10 years she would ride her bike with the Valley Spokesman Cycling Club, upwards of 3,000 miles per year. Including two weeklong summer trips all over the country. She did this until 2003 when she was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease. Shortly there after she retired and turned her focus to her grandchildren and hiking. Always the creative person and wanting to stay active with her Parkinson’s Disease, Mary began making jewelry for friends and family. Mary was very lucky to have her daughter, Jennifer, be her primary care giver for her journey through Parkinson’s Disease.

On one of her local hiking club hikes in 2007 she met Ken Davis. Mary and Ken would spend as much time as possible with each other over the next 15 years, hiking anywhere they could. They also enjoyed road trips through the country as well as spending time in Idaho at her condo near her son and her grandkids. She spent the last three and a half years in a memory care facility in Pleasant Hill, CA. Often visited by her daughter and Ken, Mary was very active until Covid in 2020 and her Memory Care facility restricted access to family. When she stopped moving and being active is when Parkinson’s Disease ruled her life.

She is survived by her daughter Jennifer Smidebush of San Ramon, CA; her son Jeff Murphy of Eagle, ID; as well as three grandchildren, Zachary Smidebush (23); Jackson Murphy (23) and Katherine Murphy (20). Mary will be cremated, and a celebration of life will be held for friends and family in the spring at her home in San Ramon, CA.

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