John Murdock

John Joseph Murdock Jr. was called home to our Lord on March 10, 2022 in Grand Blanc, Michigan at the age of 93, surrounded by loved ones. A beloved husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather and friend - his love for butchering meats, storytelling of army days, and long drives across the state of Michigan will live on through all those who knew him.

Funeral Services will be held 12 Noon, Wednesday, March 16 at Sharp Funeral Homes, Fenton Chapel, 1000 Silver Lake Rd., Fenton. Fr. Blazek officiating. John's funeral will be live streamed and may be viewed on his obituary page at www.sharpfuneralhomes.com. Interment will follow in Great Lakes National Cemetery, Holly. Visitation will be held from 10 AM until the time of service Wednesday at the funeral home. Those desiring may make contributions to The Capuchin Soup Kitchen, 1820 Mount Elliot St, Detroit, MI 48207 www.cskdetroit.org.

He was born to John Joseph Murdock Sr. and Sophia Ann Latka on July 15, 1928 in Detroit, Michigan. The second of five children, John had a humble beginning, growing up in a house with no bathroom. As a child, he had fond memories of traveling with his father on a train to Indian River to go fishing. He graduated high school from Sweetest Heart of Mary in Detroit in 1948 and met the love of his life, Barbara Jean Kozlowski, in 1950 at a mutual friend’s wedding.

Shortly after, in 1951, John enlisted in the army and was drafted as a kitchen cook at Fort Custer, Michigan. Because of his sharp skills and robust knowledge of meats, he was spared twice from being deployed overseas to fight in the Korean War, simply because his superiors couldn’t bear to be without his cooking.

He married Barbara on May 3, 1952. Together they had three children: Chuck, Kathy and Cindy. Over their nearly 70 years of marriage, they traveled all over the United States, but John had a deep love for the Great Lakes State. Some of his favorite pastimes were taking Sunday drives to Burt Lake for picnics or Port Huron to watch the boats cruise along the channel, and visiting the Cross In The Woods Shrine in Indian River. John also loved going to the casino - he accomplished the impressive feat of visiting every one in the state of Michigan. And almost everywhere he went, John would run into someone he knew, whether it was on vacation or on his own street - many fondly knew him as “Johnny.”

His passion for cooking did not stop after the army - John worked as a meat cutter for 18 years. (If anyone had the pleasure of grocery shopping with him, they knew the meat counter was the first place he would head to in the store) He also worked for Bob Evans for over 20 years as a driver and salesman. During the holiday season, he would make nearly 200lbs. of kielbasa from scratch - an expertise that will surely be missed by those who had the pleasure of enjoying it.

During retirement, John’s love for bowling took off - impressively he bowled a 298 and would never let his competitors forget it. He enjoyed watching any and all sports, but his love for the Detroit Red Wings surpassed them all. As a life long fan, he had season tickets back when their home arena was Olympia Stadium, and he even obtained a scoreboard light bulb and building brick before it was demolished. In addition, because of his love for driving, he took a job for the service department at Lexus as a driver and worked there for over 5 years.

John is survived by his wife, Barbara; his children Chuck (and Kathy), Kathy (and Kevin), Cindy (and Ken); his grandchildren Jacob (and Danielle), Mary (and Brian), Paul (and Erin) and Amy (and Jon); his great-grandchildren Michael, Ashlynn, Connor, Kennedy and Waylon; his sister Barbara; his sister-in-law Camille; and many nieces and nephews. He is preceded in death by his parents, his Baby Boy, his sisters Dorothy and Virginia, his brother Richard, and many sisters-in-law and brothers-in-law.

Tributes may be shared at www.sharpfuneralhomes.com