Falba
Falba M. Hannett
d. June 25, 2016
December 29, 1922 - June 25, 2016
An ever gracious lady to the last, in the early afternoon of Saturday, June 25, 2016 - a time that would impose the least inconvenience on the much loved children and devoted healthcare workers who were with her at the end - Falba Exum Murphy Hannett slept away at the age of 93 in the beloved home that had been her residence for the preceding sixty-one years.
Falba was born on December 29, 1922, in Casper, WY to William Foster Murphy and Hallie Exum Murphy. Her father had first come to New Mexico shortly before the First World War, where, on the night of March 9, 1916, as the manager of the Western Union telegraph office in Columbus, NM, he sent dispatches by wire to Washington, D.C., informing the nation that America was under attack by Poncho Villa and his soldiers, the first such attack on American soil by a foreign invader since the War of 1812.
As an infant, Falba's parents moved to Albuquerque, where her father managed the Western Union office downtown. As high school students at Albuquerque High School, Falba and her younger brother, William Foster Murphy, Jr., were among the early skiers at the La Madera Ski Area (now Sandia Peak), where a ski trail was later dedicated in her brother's memory following his death in combat on a snow covered mountain in northern Italy as a member of the famed Tenth Mountain Division shortly before the end of the Second World War.
Falba graduated from the University of New Mexico in 1944, where she was active in the Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority. In 1946, she married George W. Hannett, a Navy veteran and young Albuquerque attorney, and together they would go on to have four children.
Falba was a devoted and loyal wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and friend. She loved the outdoors, reading, gardening, and cooking. She enjoyed traveling to many countries throughout the world, and loved to entertain friends and family in her beautiful home and garden.
She was a member of the Albuquerque Alumnae Association of Kappa Kappa Gamma, which elected her to its Hall of Fame in 1984 and from which she was scheduled to receive recognition this fall of her 75th year of membership in the sorority. She was also a member of PEO, Chapter E, the Junior League of Albuquerque, the Ya Ya Book Club and St. Margaret's Guild at St. John's Episcopal Cathedral. She was also a part of a collection of family and friends who called themselves the Treacherous Trekkers as they hiked the mountains of New Mexico, and a knitting and needle work group made up of lifelong friends who wryly named themselves the Happy Hookers. Raised and married at First Presbyterian Church in downtown Albuquerque, Falba joined St. John's Episcopal Cathedral following her marriage where she remained an active and faithful member for the next seventy years.
She was preceded in death by her parents, brother, and husband. Falba is survived by her three daughters and their spouses, Polly H. McLaughlin (Robert), Charlotte A. Hannett (Ray Isengard) of Albuquerque, and Mary Ellen Wolfe (Thomas) of Bozeman, MT; and her son, George Foster Hannett of Albuquerque, who was her principal caregiver and companion each day during the last twelve years of her life. She is also survived by six grandchildren, twelve great-grandchildren, a number of much cherished cousins, and two wonderful Golden retrievers.
The family wishes to express its deep appreciation to those individuals who lovingly and faithfully assisted Falba during the later years of her life - her housekeeper, Sofia Ruiz, her gardener, Macario Guzman, her healthcare providers, Cynthia Lovato, Alexious Lovato, Holly Scott, and Sydney Chavez, her hospice nurse, Mary Chavez, and the other wonderful members of the staff at Ambercare Hospice.
A Memorial Service will be held on Tuesday, July 12, 2016, 1:30 p.m. at St. John's Episcopal Cathedral, 415 Silver Ave, SW, with a reception to follow at the church. A private interment of cremains will follow at Sunset Memorial Park.
It was Falba's wish that if any desire to leave a memorial in her name, that in lieu of flowers, a gift be made in her memory to a charity of the donor's choice which seeks to do the most for those in our society who have the least, such as The Salvation Army, Joy Junction, Roadrunner Food Bank, St. Martin's Hospitality Center, or Albuquerque Rescue Mission.
An ever gracious lady to the last, in the early afternoon of Saturday, June 25, 2016 - a time that would impose the least inconvenience on the much loved children and devoted healthcare workers who were with her at the end - Falba Exum Murphy Hannett slept away at the age of 93 in the beloved home that had been her residence for the preceding sixty-one years.
Falba was born on December 29, 1922, in Casper, WY to William Foster Murphy and Hallie Exum Murphy. Her father had first come to New Mexico shortly before the First World War, where, on the night of March 9, 1916, as the manager of the Western Union telegraph office in Columbus, NM, he sent dispatches by wire to Washington, D.C., informing the nation that America was under attack by Poncho Villa and his soldiers, the first such attack on American soil by a foreign invader since the War of 1812.
As an infant, Falba's parents moved to Albuquerque, where her father managed the Western Union office downtown. As high school students at Albuquerque High School, Falba and her younger brother, William Foster Murphy, Jr., were among the early skiers at the La Madera Ski Area (now Sandia Peak), where a ski trail was later dedicated in her brother's memory following his death in combat on a snow covered mountain in northern Italy as a member of the famed Tenth Mountain Division shortly before the end of the Second World War.
Falba graduated from the University of New Mexico in 1944, where she was active in the Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority. In 1946, she married George W. Hannett, a Navy veteran and young Albuquerque attorney, and together they would go on to have four children.
Falba was a devoted and loyal wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and friend. She loved the outdoors, reading, gardening, and cooking. She enjoyed traveling to many countries throughout the world, and loved to entertain friends and family in her beautiful home and garden.
She was a member of the Albuquerque Alumnae Association of Kappa Kappa Gamma, which elected her to its Hall of Fame in 1984 and from which she was scheduled to receive recognition this fall of her 75th year of membership in the sorority. She was also a member of PEO, Chapter E, the Junior League of Albuquerque, the Ya Ya Book Club and St. Margaret's Guild at St. John's Episcopal Cathedral. She was also a part of a collection of family and friends who called themselves the Treacherous Trekkers as they hiked the mountains of New Mexico, and a knitting and needle work group made up of lifelong friends who wryly named themselves the Happy Hookers. Raised and married at First Presbyterian Church in downtown Albuquerque, Falba joined St. John's Episcopal Cathedral following her marriage where she remained an active and faithful member for the next seventy years.
She was preceded in death by her parents, brother, and husband. Falba is survived by her three daughters and their spouses, Polly H. McLaughlin (Robert), Charlotte A. Hannett (Ray Isengard) of Albuquerque, and Mary Ellen Wolfe (Thomas) of Bozeman, MT; and her son, George Foster Hannett of Albuquerque, who was her principal caregiver and companion each day during the last twelve years of her life. She is also survived by six grandchildren, twelve great-grandchildren, a number of much cherished cousins, and two wonderful Golden retrievers.
The family wishes to express its deep appreciation to those individuals who lovingly and faithfully assisted Falba during the later years of her life - her housekeeper, Sofia Ruiz, her gardener, Macario Guzman, her healthcare providers, Cynthia Lovato, Alexious Lovato, Holly Scott, and Sydney Chavez, her hospice nurse, Mary Chavez, and the other wonderful members of the staff at Ambercare Hospice.
A Memorial Service will be held on Tuesday, July 12, 2016, 1:30 p.m. at St. John's Episcopal Cathedral, 415 Silver Ave, SW, with a reception to follow at the church. A private interment of cremains will follow at Sunset Memorial Park.
It was Falba's wish that if any desire to leave a memorial in her name, that in lieu of flowers, a gift be made in her memory to a charity of the donor's choice which seeks to do the most for those in our society who have the least, such as The Salvation Army, Joy Junction, Roadrunner Food Bank, St. Martin's Hospitality Center, or Albuquerque Rescue Mission.
Service Details
Tuesday, July 12th, 2016, 1:30pm, St. John's Episcopal Cathedral
Interment Details
Sunset Memorial Park
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