Nancy E. Allen Murphy

Strong-willed and full of humor to the end, Nancy left us gracefully at her home, as she wished, this Saturday morning following a 4-year battle with COPD.

As those who knew her will attest, Nancy was accustomed to getting the things she wished for. Though hard-work, self-determination, occasional trickery, and of course the support of her admiring husband Gordon, Nancy built a life and family that was brimful with love and memorable experiences.

Born to Fred and Ruth Allen, Nancy grew up in Sunderland and Amherst with her four siblings Harvey, Ted, Edwina and Leslie. After graduating from Smith Vocational high school, Nancy worked for a kilt-maker on Green St. and later Pro-Brush in Florence. In 1952, Nancy utilized the classic "flat-tire" ruse in an ostensible plot to meet a young good-looking Air Force veteran with a full head of hair. Gordon took the bait, fixed the tire and the two began to date. They were wed two years later, a wonderful union that would last the following 65 years.

Throughout that time Nancy and Gordon were inseparable, working side-by-side in business and in life, building a local real estate firm that would become one of the longest running in Northampton and raising two remarkable children, David and Jeanne.

Nancy's talents were widespread. She was an exceptional gardener, spending countless hours tending to and improving the grounds around their home. She was an excellent quilter and basket weaver, spending time with her girlfriends quilting and time with Gordon making Nantucket baskets. She was an avid collector of dolls, Fiestaware and antiques.

Each winter, with her feet on the dash and his on the pedal, the Murphy's would head south, frequenting Antique & Junque shops along the way, eventually arriving in Sarasota, FL where they would enjoy the finest boxed-wine until the spring returned to New England. Among other places, Nancy enjoyed Bermuda, Hawaii and Canada, most recently traveling while in her late 80's to Nova Scotia to visit her relatives. Nancy enjoyed classical music, her black BMW, hallmark movies and crows, she disliked Gordon's country-western music, being cold, and squirrels - referring to them as "strawberry thieves."

Of all the things that Nancy enjoyed, finding ways to keep her swimming pool heated to precisely 85 degrees was near the top of her list. All those she knew, including her children and grandchildren were sworn to secrecy, never to reveal the true temperature to Gordon who was annually baffled by the summer heating bill. In a pinch she was known to drop the thermometer in ice-water if Gordon had become suspicious, though it was never quite as easy for her to explain the steam that would rise from the pool during brisk summer mornings.

Nancy lived life the way she wanted, always surrounded by the people she cared about while and doing the things she wished. She was unapologetically herself and will be forever missed for that. She was survived by her dedicated husband Gordon Murphy, her siblings Harvey Allen, Ted Allen & Edwina Kreps, her children David Murphy and Jeanne Troxell Munson, their partners Ilene Berezin and Willard Munson, her grandchildren Lindsay Troxell & partner Cory Smith, Matthew Troxell & wife Samantha and Erik Munson as well as countless 4-legged grandchildren. Predeceased by her beloved brother Leslie Allen and her son-in-law Robert Troxell.

There will be no calling hours; a celebration of life will be held at the Garden House at Look Park on Sunday February 24th from 1-3PM.

The family would like to express the deepest appreciation to all those who help care for Nancy and the family and would humbly request that anyone willing consider making a donation in Nancy's name to The VNA/Hospice of Cooley Dickinson Health Care, 168 Industrial Drive, Northampton, MA 01060