TORRINGTON – Rachél “Shelly” N. Murphy, 61 of Cheyenne, died Wednesday, February 28, 2024, at Swedish Medical Center in Englewood, Colorado.
A celebration will be at 10 a.m. Wednesday, March 6, 2024 at All Saints Episcopal Church in Torrington, with Kenli Barling officiating.
Arrangements are under the direction of the Colyer Funeral Home and friends may send their condolences to the family at www.colyerfuneralhome.com
In lieu of flowers, donations can be sent to Shelly’s Warm Blanket Project, Jonah Bank, 2015 Central Avenue Cheyenne, WY 82001.
Rachél “Shelly” Murphy, the daughter of Gary Ray and Nancy Elizabeth DeBolt was born September 25, 1962, in Scottsbluff, Nebraska. She graduated from Torrington high school in 1981, and later received her AS in Criminal Justice from LCCC.
She married Paul D. Bartow (son of H. Dale Bartow and E. Nadine Bartow) in 1982. While remaining friends they both went on to remarry. Together they had three children.
Shelly married her soulmate Kevin Francis Murphy, August 6, 1994, at Church of the Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Uniting their families. Shelly was humbling when it came to family dynamics; she lived in the words “Family is the people in your life who want you in theirs; the ones who accept you for who you are. The ones who would do anything to see you smile and love you no matter what, despite DNA”
Shelly worked various jobs throughout her life, touching many souls. She worked in retail, was an activity director for elderly care, cooked in The Canteen at the V.A. Hospital, was a mailroom operator at A&B Bank, and a bank teller with Jonah Bank.
She always looked for opportunities to help other people. Shelly started and participated in many outreach efforts throughout her community in Cheyenne. In 2009 she started Jake’s Mom Cares, providing care packages to troops overseas. She was an advocate and decorator for the Festival of Trees. She helped raise money for cancer research, primarily the Lights On Bright organization. She continued to spread her love through ER Creations; a greeting card company in which she would make send and sell her cards to support her hobby and donate the money to various charities.
As creative as Shelly was, her many passions were: playing pool league for the VFW, photography, party planning, gardening, card making for her entire family, and quilting. The first quilts she made were for her mother-in-law and for her father.
Surviving Shelly, is her husband of almost 30 years, Kevin of Cheyenne Wyoming; four children: Jacob Bartow of Cheyenne; Paul Bartow of Laramie; Stephanie Bartow of Wabash, Nebraska, Fiancé Jeremy Fisher (Vance) and grandson Jacob (Sparkplug) Vance; Nicole (Tyler) Reeh of Lincoln, Nebraska and granddaughter Leona Reeh; father Gary DeBolt; brother Scott (Jen) DeBolt; sister Sarah DeBolt; many aunts, uncles, brother and sisters in law, nieces, nephews, and friends.
Preceding Shelly in death were her mother Nancy DeBolt and her father-in-law Francis Murphy.
