A beloved friend to faculty and students at Eastern Elementary School passed over the weekend.

Jackie Murphy, who had just turned 50 in January, was remembered Monday by her coworkers at Beaufort County Schools as a special person who made a tremendous impact in her role as a teacher assistant at the school.

Working with Murphy in first grade for four years, EES teacher Jacki Olson saw that love shine through every day. Together, the two made a formidable team, working through some difficult classroom issues together.

“If she knew that a kid did not have the best home life, she would try to bring them special treats,” Olson said. “Sometimes she would even let them come home on the weekends with her and she would spoil them and take them to do fun things. The kids at school just love Miss Murphy. They can talk about her for hours. She was just such a great person.”

Even students who may have been challenging or defiant towards other teachers seemed to be drawn to Murphy. She in turn showed these children love, challenging them to be respectful and to not make excuses.

“The most challenging ones were the ones who wouldn’t connect with anybody but her,” Olson said. “They would listen to her, behave for her and do their work for her. Sometimes, other teachers couldn’t get them to do anything. She was just so loving.”

That love for other also showed through in Murphy’s passion for feeding people. Students and faculty alike could always look forward to special treats. From sausage biscuits in the morning to loaded baked potatoes for lunch, she was constantly making food for others, just to be nice. Fellow TA Tina Pinkham was one who saw this generosity on a regular basis.

“If we would have more people as caring as her, we wouldn’t have all this violence going around,” Pinkham said.

Even outside of school hours, Murphy would take students skating or on special outings, as a reward for good behavior. Whether filling in with the after school program, for a teacher or any other task she was asked, she loved her students and her fellow staff members unconditionally.

“She was one of a kind,” Pinkham said. “She gave these children high hopes and wanted them to do good things. It didn’t matter the color of their skin or their home situations. She expected the same thing from everybody. She expected respect and for you to do your best in school and to not come up with excuses.”