Page 2044 - Week 06 - Tuesday, 21 June 2011
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not aware of. It was another contribution from Jim, which was not known to many. As Father Steve said to me, when it came to fundraising, if Jim said it would happen, it would happen.
As the Chief Minister has already noted, I think that the way Archbishop Mark Coleridge summed it up is worth reflecting on. He summed it up well at the funeral when he said that he had never met a person with so many fingers in so many pies as Jim.
All of Canberra enjoyed the good times of Jim Murphy’s contributions, be that in commerce, in charities, in sport, in politics. Rarely has one man made so many contributions to so many areas or been such a positive influence for so many people. Canberra is the richer for his making Canberra his home and we are all poorer for his passing. He was unique. He was passionate. He was committed. But most of all, he was effective. We may well not see his like again, but I, like so many others in Canberra, have been touched by his compassion and impressed by his commitment.
There is more than a little sadness in these times, but I think we owe it to the man and his lasting legacy never to forget that in our busy lives we should take some time to enjoy the good times, to reflect on our good fortune and to help those less fortunate than ourselves. So the next time we do have a moment, we should all raise a glass in remembrance of a great local success story, a great man and a great Canberran. Farewell, Jim Murphy.
MS HUNTER (Ginninderra—Parliamentary Convenor, ACT Greens): Jim Murphy died unexpectedly on 26 May after complications from surgery. Jim was aged 63. He is survived by his wife Margaret and sons Damien and Adrien. On behalf of the ACT Greens I extend my deep sympathy to his family and acknowledge their presence in the gallery today.
Jim was the youngest of eight children and, sadly, the first to pass away; a man of Irish Catholic heritage who lived by those ideals and was respected and regarded by many. His funeral was testimony to the affection in which he was held, with one of the biggest turnouts ever seen in Canberra, with many hundreds of Canberrans there to farewell Jim and reflect upon his considerable contribution to our community.
Regardless of one’s political views, few could dispute the devotion Jim had for Canberra. He was deeply committed to the economic development of the area and gave freely of his time to advance Canberra.
Perhaps people liked to put Jim Murphy in a box—the man on the TV selling wine “for the good times” or a friend to conservative politics. While this was part of Jim, like most of us, there were many facets to the man. He was highly regarded by many and he should be applauded, for instance, for keeping his business thriving for 30 years and facing the challenges of a changing market, particularly one that saw competition from both major national supermarkets; for understanding his product and most importantly his customers and never wavering from that.
Former Coles Liquor boss Craig Watkins knew Jim and often visited Market Cellars. He was impressed by Jim’s success in business, considering his Fyshwick store was
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