Jane Pearsall Murphy, of Rumson, passed away Feb. 28, 2021. She was 98 years young. She was predeceased by her mother Ethel Bellamy Pearsall; father Latham D. Pearsall; aunt Emily Pearsall Bowne; uncle Elmer Pearsall; aunt Rose Pearsall; father-in-law Frank C. Sparling (Big Jack); mother-in-law Mary Belle Sparling; brother-in-law Joseph Sparling; husband John C. Sparling; second husband Daniel J. Murphy; and her son John L. Sparling (Jack).
Jane is survived by her daughter Donna Sparling Kammerer and husband Bob; son Dr. Robert Sparling and wife Deborah; and Jack’s life partner Diane Marron and daughters, Jane, Amy and Jenifer. She is also survived by her loving grandchildren, John C. Sparling Jr. (J.C.) of Atlanta; Jill Sparling Roe and husband Chris of Los Angeles; Tiffany Kammerer Wysocki of Cullowhee, North Carolina; Timothy Kammerer and wife Rebecca of Barnesville, Maryland; Lauren Kammerer of Little Silver; Abigail Sparling Pena and husband Jody of Austin, Texas; and John H. Sparling of Long Branch; and sister-in-law Joan Sparling Goebel of Clifton Park, New York and cousin Suzanne Parmly of Red Bank.
She was blessed with nine beautiful great-grandchildren and loving nieces and nephew.
Jane lived in Rumson her entire life and raised her family there. Her “tree of life” ancestry goes back well into the archives of Rumson.
She began her life in a beautiful Victorian home built by her grandfather William Pearsall, which is now on the town’s Historical Registry. Jane won a prize in Rumson’s annual Baby Parade held at Victory Park. Jane’s aunt, Emily Pearsall Bowne, helped raise her from the age of 8. Emily was the principal of The Lafayette Street School and ultimately encouraged and nurtured Jane’s strength as a woman while providing a stable environment for her to pursue a career in education. Jane’s father, Latham D. Pearsall, and uncle, Elmer Pearsall, were also home builders in Rumson and Elmer was Rumson’s building Inspector.
Jane graduated Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School in 1939 as part of the first class to have attended the school for four years. While there, she was asked to represent the school as one of two students in the State of New Jersey competition for her musical talents; the other student was Nelson Riddle, the extraordinary musical arranger for Frank Sinatra. Jane met her husband John C. Sparling while attending high school. Upon graduation, she attended Trenton State Teachers College (now The College of New Jersey). John went into Kings Point Merchant Marine Academy and graduated as an officer and merchant marine engineer. They married as World War II began.
Jane and “Johnny” started their family with son John L. Sparling (Jack) and later siblings Donna and Robert (Bobby). That time was filled with hopes and dreams while living in their home in Rumson, built by her father. In November 1956, Johnny passed away and Jane learned the challenges of raising her children alone. She began her local teaching career at Rumson Country Day School to help provide for her young family and enjoyed a tenure of 25 years helping shape the lives of students in the second and fourth grades.
In July 1963, Jane found new love and companionship and married her friend of many years Daniel J. Murphy. They shared many happy years of marriage which also gave Jane and her children a wonderful new family. Those years were filled with many fun gatherings with the Goodnough/Murphy family: Ronnie, Coralee (Corky), Pam and husbands, and brother Greg.
Upon her retirement from Rumson Country Day School, Jane was compelled to refine and enrich her knowledge and returned to The College of New Jersey to earn her master’s degree in special education with a certification of “Learning Disability Specialist” at the young age of 69. She continued to work in the field well into her 80s.
She was not done yet though. Her son Dr. Robert Sparling hired “Mom” for his chiropractic office at the NJ Center for the Healing Arts in Red Bank. Jane worked as his receptionist, meeting, greeting and charming all his patients.
Yes, Jane had fun. She thoroughly enjoyed her two monthly bridge clubs. All the gals shared their family “goings-on” with each other to create a bond that was never going to break, ever. The “clubs” lasted for over 60 years. In her quiet time at home, she refinished family heirlooms and antiques with patience and perseverance. The resultant soft patinas were genuinely reflective of her beautiful face as she passed them on to her family.
At the time of her death, Jane resided at Arbor Terrace assisted living in Shrewsbury. There she thoroughly enjoyed her classes: book club, art class (where she earned honorable mention in the Monmouth County Fair for her rendition of a lotus flower) and exercise to music class. She spoke often of her “dinner date” friends in the dining room and how friendly and supportive the staff was.
Jane’s faith was unconditional. She was a lifelong member of The First Presbyterian Church of Rumson and, with true dedication, shared her love of music with the choir at the church. She was the oldest living member of the church.
Jane lived a genuine life, one with the fortitude of a soldier, integrity driven with a refined elegance that was to be admired.
A celebration of life will be held for Jane at a later date, after the current pandemic restrictions are lifted. Jane will be interred in the church Memorial Garden.
The family asks that any memorial contributions be made to the First Presbyterian Church of Rumson in her memory.
The article originally appeared in the March 18 – 24, 2021 print edition of The Two River Times.
