Bruce Murphy

Bruce Alan Murphy
Bruce was born in Tampa, Florida, the second son of Richard and Corrine Murphy. He had a brother, Ed, and a sister, Rose.
Bruce's father was in the Air Force and Ed, Bruce and Rose spent the evening of the first man walking on the moon running around the yard looking through telescopes, believing they would see the man walking on the moon, while their father was inside a building at the base involved in something to do with the actual event!
While his father was stationed at a base in Long Island, they would take many outings to the beach where they would lay in the water, build sand castles and bury each other in the sand. Playing with Hot Wheels together in Rose's "big room" was one of their favorite pastimes.
Their lives changed dramatically when, after a few moves, they moved to Colorado to live with their mother. Bruce was a perfect brother to Rose and, with his wit, wisdom and pastoral love, was always there to reassure his sister when life's inevitable mysteries would get her down.
Bruce's mother sent Bruce and Rose on a bus to a local church in Northglenn, CO, where the family had settled. Bruce loved socializing with the other young people and just everything about church. He accepted Christ as his savior when he was 16 years old.
Bruce graduated from Northglenn High School and attended Wayland Baptist University for two years.
He met the love of his life, Barbara Stratton, while attending the Roaring 20's Sunday School Class at Riverside Baptist Church, and they were married on June 12, 1981.
Barb and Bruce many shared interests – they both received Black Belts in Tae Kwon Do, Bruce a 1st Degree and Barb, a 3rd Degree, and they trained together to be volunteers with Thornton CERT, a Community Emergency Response Team program that educates volunteers in disaster response skills, fire safety, light search & rescue, team organization and disaster medical operations, making them invaluable to disaster professionals during real emergencies.
Bruce's favorite travel adventures were his trip with Barb to Ireland and his trip to Israel with his mother-in-law, Lucille Stratton. He enjoyed Irish Celtic and Classical music, The Chieftains and Enya were his favorite Irish artists and his favorite Christian artist was Lauren Daigle.
Bruce, an avid motorcyclist, missed only one of his annual long-haul motorcycle trips with his friends who had the same love of the "wind in their face." In 2008, it was the year Bruce received the gift of life – a kidney from a live donor.
In 1981, Bruce became a Horace Mann Insurance agent and later moved to Farmers Insurance, attaining the status of Charted Life Underwriter and receiving the 1991 Farmers Insurance Outstanding Life Agent of the Year in 1991. He was a member of the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA) and was president of the North Metro NAIFA.
Bruce was very active at Riverside Baptist Church for many years. He served as a deacon, a trustee, Open Arms Ministry board member, and, along with his wife, Barb, served on the Riverside Puppet ministry where they used this gift on several mission trips.
Bruce's love for the Lord never waned. Reading and studying God's word was a daily practice. He watched Charles Stanley and Dr. David Jeremiah every Sunday morning before he and Barb would head to church.
He taught and preached at Northglenn First Southern Baptist for several years, where he received a Certificate of License to Preach. He faithfully led a Sunday School Class at Riverside for more than 20 years, challenging them to grow in their knowledge of the Word and never missing an opportunity to encourage and serve class members with pastoral visits. His characteristic wit and calm assurance that "all is well" endeared him to these friends and his clients as well.
Bruce has been called a man of God, a gentle soul, "just so funny", and a dedicated leader, to name a few. To Barb, he will always be remembered as a loving encourager, as the man who would pray with her every morning before she headed out to work, kiss her and say, "Love you Today."
After a lifetime of service, Bruce went to meet his Lord and Savior on November 18, 2021. He will be missed by his wife, Barbara, sister, Rose, his father, Richard, as well as a multitude of friends, clients, church family and Barb's family. Bruce's mother, Corrine, and brother, Ed, preceded him in death.
A Celebration of Life Service will be held on Saturday, December 11th, 2021 @ 11:00 am. Riverside Baptist Church, 2401 Alcott Street, Denver, CO. 80211
In lieu of flowers donations can be Made to Riverside Church -Denver, 2401 Alcott Street, Denver, CO 80211 "Bruce Murphy Memorial"