A Life of Faith and Service

After obtaining her undergraduate and graduate degrees, Mary Murphy worked briefly as a teacher.  Seeking a new career, Mary was hired as a personnel officer with the Department of the Army.  Her many assignments took her to New York, Canada and abroad.  

In 1966, Mary was appointed as a U.S. State Department foreign service.  She served in this role beginning in Washington, D.C., and later in the embassies in Quito, Ecuador, Rio de Janiero, and Paris.  She received a Meritorious Service Award during her service. 

Following her retirement from the State Department, Mary continued to use her intellect and experience and became self-employed as a personnel specialist for nine years working for a number of agencies both in the U.S. and overseas. 

Mary enrolled in the Education Parish Service Program (EPS) graduating in 1988 and became a discussion leader.  Later she was appointed as a trustee on the EPS where she served for six years. Mary lived her Catholic faith as a leader, volunteer, supporter of the Bishop’s Lenten Appeal and became a member of the Catholic Heritage Circle (CHC) when she included a gift to the diocese in her estate plan.

At her parish, St. John the Beloved, Mary was an extraordinary minister and lector. For ten years she was he facilitator of the parish bible study program.  In 1991, the bishop of Baton Rouge, La., invested her as a Lady of the ancient chivalric Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. Lady Mary Elizabeth was bestowed the Bronze Palm of Jerusalem in recognition for her years of commitment to the order and charitable works in support of the Holy Land.

Mary loved conversation, culture, and her faith. As a resident at Greenspring retirement community, she remained active as an extraordinary minister and Lector.  She simply lived her life to the fullest for 100 years.