Jay Lynn Murphy
Jay Lynn Murphy born January 11, 1944 peacefully passed away surrounded by his wife and children on September 15, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Jay was born to Thomas Hugh and Iona Murphy in Idaho Falls, he was the youngest child of 8. He was the caboose rounding out the Murphy clan with 4 girls and 4 boys. Jay took the youngest child thing very seriously and was always known to push the limits, break the rules and do things “his” way.
Jay married Darla Anderson in February 1976. Together they had 4 children; Peri, Rick, January and Christian. Jay and Darla later divorced in 1989. On December 30, 2015 he married Warunyupa (Fon) Sin-on of Thailand, together they had Journy Brook.
Jay loved his family, his wife, children, grandchildren, his siblings and his many nieces and nephews. They were all very important to him and he kept in contact with them regularly.
Jay cherished life and had many passions. During his younger years you could find him scuba diving and skiing. He had a competitive spirit and lived in the fast lane. He had many loves in his life; his family, reading, gambling, women, wine and collecting fine art. Above all else, Jay loved to Travel. His travels took him to England, Rome, Germany, Africa, Costa Rica, Aruba, Mexico, all of Virgin Islands, Taiwan, Cambodia and Spain. His favorite place to travel was Thailand, his first trip there was when he was 21 years old while serving in the Army. He loved Thailand so much that he later retired and moved to Phuket. While in Phuket he met his wife Fon and together they traveled all over Thailand, Hong Kong, Macau, Loa, Egypt and back to Vietnam.
Jay met many life long friends along the way. The friendships in his life were very important to him and he treated everyone as if they were family. His door was always open to family, friends and even strangers.
In 2019 Jay’s health brought him back to the United States.
Jay is survived by his wife Fon, his children, Peri Eby, Rick (Tiffany) Murphy, January (Brian) Stark, Christian Murphy and Journy Brook, his grandchildren Keven (Alisha) Eby, Alexis Murphy, Tanner (Kylee) Martin, Tori (Ryan) Braun, Kanyon Murphy, Hannah Stark, Taylor Eby, Abbey Stark and Payton Stark, great grandchildren Addison, Avery and Daphne, his sisters Carol Walker and LaVona Dayton and countless nieces and nephews.
Jay gallantly served in the United States Army during the Vietnam War from July 27, 1965 to August 21, 1968. Where he received many accolades, which included being promoted to First Lieutenant and receiving 2 Silver Stars and 1 Bronze Star. As quoted by the Department of the Army Headquarters 1st Infantry Division for one of his Silver Star awards “His courage and determination under fire contributed significantly to the successful with drawl of his platoon and undoubtedly saved many lives. First Lieutenant Murphy’s unquestionable valor in close combat against numerically superior hostile forces is in keeping with the finest traditions of the military service and reflects great credit upon himself, the 1st Infantry Division, and the United States Army”
We, his children would like to sincerely thank Fon for taking such good care of our dad. We saw the genuine love between the two of you and it’s heartwarming to know how much you loved each other.
Please join us for a celebration in honor of a life well lived. He wanted a party! The Celebration will be on Saturday, October 23, 2021 from 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm at Starks Funeral Parlor, 3651 South 900 East, Salt Lake City. His final resting place will be in the Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, at a later date.