Odessa (Johnston) Murphy

April 24, 1918 – Oct. 21, 2003

Odessa (Johnston) Murphy, 85, passed away at 11:40 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 21. She was born on April 24, 1918, in Freeport, Ill., to Roy and Helen (Richter) Johnston. She was preceded in death by her parents; her sisters, Dorothy Johnston and Elizabeth (Johnston) Oehmke; a brother, Roland Johnston; and by a daughter- in-law, Cindy (MacKenzie) Murphy.

As a child, her family moved to South Bend, Ind., where she graduated from Riley High School in 1936 and attended IUSB for three years. She married John P. Murphy at Notre Dame in August 1939. John died in 1994 in Naples, Fla., where they had lived since retiring in 1977. In 1998 Odessa returned to South Bend to make her home at St. Paul’s Retirement Community. In 2002 she moved to the Catherine Kasper Home in Donaldson, Ind.

She is survived by a son, Dennis Murphy of Dearborn Heights, Mich.; daughters, Sheila (James) Cook of Steamboat Springs, Colo., and Peg (Tom) Condon of Plymouth, Ind.; nine grandchildren, Michelle (Murphy) Leader, Kristen (Murphy) Walker, Lisa Murphy and Kevin Murphy, Keri (Cook) Falls and Coleman Cook, and Shannon (Condon) Roahrig, Kelli (Condon) Rood and Kyle Condon; and by five great-grandchildren.

Odessa was an active member of Retired Public Employee Association, and of the Indiana and Retired Educational Secretaries of the South Bend School Corporation. She was a former member of School Men’s Wives, Ladies of Notre Dame and the Phi Beta Psi Sorority. She was an honorary lifetime member of the Council of Catholic Women of St. William’s Church in Naples, Fla. In addition, she was an active volunteer in various organizations including volunteer work at St. Paul’s which made her life very fulfilling. However, her love and devotion for her husband and family were utmost in her life.

Cremation will take place with a memorial service to be held in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart at Notre Dame at 9:30 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 27. Visitation will be from 3 to 6 p.m. with a Rosary at 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 26, in the McGann Funeral Home.

Memorial contributions may be made to any of the following: National Multiple Sclerosis Society, 733 Third Ave., New York, NY 10017; Ovarian Cancer Research Fund, Inc., One Pennsylvania Avenue, Suite 1610, New York, NY 10119-0165 ;or to the Ara Parseghian Medical Research Fund, 3530 E. Campo Abierto, Suite 105, Tucson, AZ 85718.

Sources: Ancestry.com, Newspapers.com and FindAGrave.com

10/08/2025 EJS

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/146154167/odessa_mae-murphy