Oasa Theresa Murphy was born May 24, 1926 in Faith, SD to Anna Malene (Udager) and Martin Imsland. She grew up on her parents’ ranch west of Faith and graduated from Faith High School. She received her teaching certificate from Spearfish Normal School and taught school for two years. She worked as a telephone operator in Rapid City for a year. Oasa married Robert C. Murphy on February 28, 1948 in Hot Springs SD. They ran the ranch that Robert had grown up on south of Enning, SD. Oasa continued to live on their place after Robert’s passing in 1988 until she moved to Sturgis in 1997.

Oasa was a member of St. Anthony’s Catholic Church in Red Owl SD, St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in Sturgis, SD, the Meade County Senior Citizens, the Boneita Springs Extension Club and the Bear Butte Quilters.

She lost her father when she was 12 and grew up in the Depression era with all its implications of ‘waste not want not’. She was frugal in her own needs but very generous and trusting when others needed help.

Oasa was a first generation American and very proud of her Norwegian heritage. She traveled to Norway several times, and met many of her extended family there. One of her favorite words was uffda, which may or may not translate into a four-letter word. She always disputed a four-letter translation because she would not use foul language. She was proud to say she was a stubborn Norwegian, and did not hesitate to express her opinion on how things should be done. Besides Norway, she visited Europe, Costa Rica, New Zealand, the Caribbean, Alaska, and other locations in the United States.

Oasa worked very hard all of her life and she taught her children to be hard working and self-sufficient. She taught her daughters to sew and the basics of cooking. Although she hated cooking, she was a very good baker. She invented a recipe for pumpkin pie that for many is the gold standard. Perhaps the family’s favorite Norwegian treat that she made for holidays is lefse, spread with whipped cream, sugar, and cinnamon.

She was adventurous and up for anything. When asked at breakfast what she wanted to do on her 97th birthday she replied without hesitation, I want to go on a zipline, which she did that day. She was the oldest person to have ever gone on that company’s zipline and was beaming when she got down. She readily jumped in to “mud-bog” with her grandson Aaron. She learned to cross-country ski in her 60s. She never learned how to ride a bicycle but rode on the back of motorcycles into her 70s. She always laughed at our jokes, whether they were funny or not.

Some of her favorite things to do were quilting, reading, traveling, playing sudoku, scrabble and rummikub. She especially enjoyed playing rummikub with her friends several nights a week in Spearfish and won games with her daughter just a few days before her death. Demonstrating a commitment few can match, she maintained a daily diary starting in 1980.

She was very creative, always learning and making many items to give to family and friends. She had many talents and wasn’t afraid to tackle a big project. She refinished furniture, reupholstered, sewed much of her family’s clothing, painted, embroidered, crocheted, etched glass, and hooked and braided rugs. Her greatest creative passion was her quilting. When asked if she had made 100 quilts she replied “oh way more than that.” When she lived on the ranch she started a quilting club and helped many of her friends to learn to quilt. In the summers after she moved to town, she would host weekend Quilt Retreats at the ranch. She worked with others at St. Francis of Assisi to make infant quilts to donate to families with newborns. She was still quilting up to about 6 months before her passing despite having arthritis and neuropathy in her hands. One of her granddaughters called her the "Grandma factory."

She loved flowers and all manner of plants and birds. The yard at her home in Sturgis was a thing of beauty and a source of comfort and renewal for her.

She is survived by her 7 children; Ginny Waterland, Sturgis SD; Tom (Bonnie) Murphy, Livingston MT; Kathleen Murphy, Stevensville MT; JoAnne (Alvin) Chytka, Oshkosh NE; Richard (Lynn) Murphy, Bulverde TX; Amanda Murphy, Livingston MT; and Kelli Murphy, Livingston MT; her grandchildren Anna Waterland Dykstra (children Roald and Sigrid), Spearfish SD; Robert (Anne) Waterland (children Oliver, Otto, Edwin, and Margaret) Northfield MN, John (Dr Rita Sandidge) Waterland, Minneapolis MN, Dr Brandi Chytka, Oshkosh NE, Bridger (Tess) Chytka (daughter Kooper Jo) Thedford NE; Alicia Murphy, Livingston MT, Aaron Murphy, Belgrade MT; stepgrandchildren Eli (Andrea) Hall, (children Colter and Emma), Nelson BC; Jesse (Caitlin) Hall (children Jack and Connor), Red Lodge MT, and her brother Ted Imsland, Rapid City SD.

She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Robert, sisters Vally Daniels and Thora Price, infant brother Torjus, and two infant grandchildren.

Oasa loved ‘Dad’ deeply to the end. During a conversation the day before she passed away, she teared up and said “I just miss your Dad.”

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Covenant House.

See you later, Mom!