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The Question and Answer feature helps readers learn more about prominent people in the business community. This issue’s Q&A profiles Dick Murphy, who owns the downtown speciality shop Mrs. Murphy’s Irish Gifts with his wife, Sandra.
 Inertia/for the SFBJ Name: Dick Murphy Occupation: Co-owner of Mrs. Murphy’s Irish Gifts Hometown: Sioux Falls Age: 59 Background: Graduated from Washington High School in 1966; started at the University of South Dakota but served in the Air Force during Vietnam; graduated from USD in 1975 with a bachelor’s degree in psychology, sociology and social work; worked for the state’s information referral network and then St. Mary’s Hospital in Pierre for 20 years; opened the gift shop in 1997 Family: Wife, Sandra; three sons: Rich, Kieron and Ryan; six grandchildren and one on the way
Q: Tell me about your interests and hobbies. A: “I enjoy golfing with my family. It’s a time we gather around as a family, not so much competitive. I’m just an old duffer. We just enjoy being out. I enjoy artwork, whether it be oil painting or a lot of time I find myself carving something, just whittling away. I just enjoy the world of art. I like to dabble in that.” Q: How did you become interested in your field? A: “We’d joke that we were going to open up a little Irish store one day. My brother challenged me once and asked, ‘What would you be doing if you’re not doing what you’re doing?’ My answer was, of course, ‘I’d like to open up a little Irish store.’ That was five years before we actually did that. I got to thinking about that – the Grogans, the Donelans, they haven’t done that yet, maybe we should. I had to do a little homework to see what it would be like to go into business. I was a hospital social worker for 20 years, doing the good work, helping people in that profession, but it wasn’t the world of business as we’re talking about. It’s something I realized I would bring to a family-style business. I’d start out humble and small and build onto that. As people got to know who were are and see that we’re celebrating our heritage, I realized that some things in the world of social work carried over: respect for people, their individual worth. We could find something for everyone in a store like this, help them find gifts for different family occasions, whether it be a wedding, Mother’s Day, anniversaries.” Q: What do you enjoy most about work? A: “My job is listening to people’s stories about their family, where they came from, how they’re planning a trip to Ireland to see where there ancestors came from or after their trip about how they enjoyed the people. ... The Irish connection seems to be something they really enjoy talking about. I enjoy listening to their family stories.” Q: How do you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day? A: “Our family has been in the parade since it became a parade. We’ll be building a float this year. We’ve done Blarney Castle, a little thatch-roofed cottage. One year my nephew designed a huge beer glass with a spigot above it with green “beer” flowing out of it. We’ve had leprechauns, rainbows, pots of gold. Sometimes my dad would try to make a political statement. Whatever we did it was always motivated by a sense of a family gathering. We have been known to go out and celebrate with a green beer. But usually it’s a family meal with Irish stew, soda bread, colcannon.” Q: Were you and your cohorts able to raise enough money to keep the Potato Man sculpture from SculptureWalk in Sioux Falls? A: “Absolutely! When Jim Clark said maybe we should try to keep that, I thought that was a great idea. ... Enough families pulled together to make donations to honor their name and their ancestors. It became a really nice addition. It will be when the parks department next spring is able to lay the groundwork for placement of the statue. It will be so nice to see it and in McKennan Park as well.” Q: What’s your favorite Irish blessing? A: “May the roof above you never fall in and those who gather below it never fall out. It has a humorous and a serious side.” Q: How do you find time to balance your job and your family? A: “I have the advantage of having my family here. My brother lives here, my mother. I’m originally from Sioux Falls. When I was doing social work in Pierre, coming back to Sioux Falls was like coming back to the old sod. My three sons and their families are here. I am so fortunate. Yesterday (Feb. 17) was my youngest son’s birthday. We got together and celebrated. It’s always a fine time to be together and enjoy those life events. We just bought a little house on Lake Herman. We’ll start enjoying some summer activities up that way. ... I also love to go out pheasant hunting with the kids. It’s one of the fall hobbies we all do together. It’s about getting out to see South Dakota. We’re not the best shots, so it’s not about how much we bring home. It’s about communing with nature in the fall and being together.” Q: What kind of music is in your car or what do you listen to on the radio? A: “I listen to a bit of the traditional Irish music. It puts a lilt in your step when you’re listening to the beat of Irish music. I find myself drawn to more CDs and tapes of that. Otherwise I listen to very traditional oldies. That’s my growing up years in the ’60s. I’ve got my favorites: Janis Joplin; Blood, Sweat & Tears, Chicago, the Motown sounds.” Q: What’s your favorite childhood memory? A: “Growing up in the North End, playing in Terrace Park in all seasons. Those were fun years of growing up; the ’50s were great neighborhood years. From going ice skating on Covell Lake to sledding down Terrace Park hill near the band shell, in summer walking up to swim in the pool. We were really fortunate in my generation to grow up in the North End. We had a neighborhood full of kids.” Q: What do you think are the best and worst things about Sioux Falls? A: “The best thing is obvious. We’ve got a real treasure for parks and places for people to recreate and just a nice size city. People like to think of Sioux Falls as a big city, but it’s just a small town that just keeping bigger. It hasn’t lost that quality of what it’s like to be South Dakotan. It’s everything from accessibility to government to neighborhoods, how people enjoy moving here and being a part of this community. The worst thing, I have my pet peeve, is if people drop litter. I have such a tirade when I see paper or broken glass. I try to pick it up.” – Rosemary McCoy, Business Journal |
