Denis J. Murphy

SHELTON, CT - Denis J. Murphy Jr., 83, a resident of Shelton, CT for the past four years and a former long time Hyde Park resident, died Monday, November 26, 2007. He was a Loan Officer for Marine Midland Bank in Poughkeepsie for many years until his retirement in 1986. Mr. Murphy was a member of the Knights of Columbus Council # 6111 in Hyde Park, and a communicant of Regina Coeli Church, Hyde Park, and St. Lawrence Church, Shelton. He loved to play golf, was an avid reader and enjoyed woodworking. Mr. Murphy served in the U.S. Army during World War II. He was a Combat Engineer in the Normandy Invasion of Utah Beach, the Battle of the Bulge, and served in Central Europe and Ardennes. A member of the 291st Combat Engineer Battalion, he was an explosives expert attached to the 4th Infantry Division and later served in the 82nd Airborne Division. He received the Distinguished Unit Badge, the European-African-Middle Eastern Service Medal, and the Good Conduct Medal. Born in Jamaica, Queens, NY on January 23, 1924, he was the son of the late Denis J. Sr. and Margaret Cormack Murphy. On April 5, 1947 in St. Nicholas Church in Flushing, NY he married Gloria A. Maier. She predeceased him on February 9, 1985. He is survived by two sons, Denis J. Murphy III and wife, Kathleen, of Palm Coast, FL, and Timothy Murphy and wife, Elaine, of Red Hook, NY; two daughters, Colleen Wittenberg and husband, Niles, of Adirondack, NY, and Eileen Hilinski and husband, Gregory, of Shelton, CT; eight grandchildren, Mary, Denis, Erin, Lauren, Matthew, Jesse, Keenan, and Grant; three great grandchildren; a brother, Arthur Murphy and wife, Lona, of New Hyde Park, NY; a sister, Margaret Johnston of Tucson, AZ; and many nieces and nephews. In addition to his wife, he was predeceased by a beloved granddaughter, Kerry Wittenberg; a brother, John P. Murphy and his wife, Mary; a sister, Sarah Norton and her husband, George; and a brother-in-law Charles Johnston. Calling hours will be from 10 am to 12 Noon on Friday, November 30, 2007 at Sweet's Funeral Home, Inc., Rte. 9, Hyde Park. A Mass of Christian Burial will follow the visitation at 12 Noon at Regina Coeli Church, Rte. 9, Hyde Park. Burial with military honors will follow in the family plot in Union Cemetery of Hyde Park. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Connecticut VNA, 680 Bridgeport Ave., 3rd Floor, Shelton, CT 06484, or, the Shelton Lakes Healthcare Center, 5 Lake Rd., Shelton, CT 06484. To send a condolence or for directions, please visit www.sweetsfuneralhome.com.