Kevin was born in Olympia, WA to Pius and Margaret Murphy. The youngest of six children, he grew up near Maytown, WA, working on the family farm and graduated from Tenino High School in 1947. From there, he went to work in a logging camp near Toledo, WA, eventually buying his own logging truck. Striving to make more of himself, he attended St. Martin's College where he met his first wife Loraine, they married in 1954.

Kevin enlisted into the US Army in 1951. He was selected for Officers Candidate School and commissioned in 1954. Following aviation training, he was assigned to the 30th Topo Group surveying Alaska. His military career saw him stationed in Germany, France, Thailand and various US bases with a growing family in tow. Kevin was dual rated and flew multiple military aircraft models during his career. He was a veteran of both the Korean and Vietnam war and was the commanding officer of 145th Helicopter Platoon which was the forerunner unit to 281st Assault Helicopter Company, known as the Intruders. His military awards include the Legion of Merit, Purple Heart, Distinguished Flying Cross and Meritorious Service Medals.

After retiring from the Army in 1973, Kevin started his own land clearing and road building business and bought and sold real estate. He was a hard-working, proud Irishman and a lifelong member of the Knights of Columbus.

In 1979, Kevin married his second wife, Bernice. They were inseparable until her passing in 2015. Forever dedicated to his family, he never hesitated to provide guidance and support to his children, often reminding them: "You will always have an ace in the hole here at the Murphy Ranch".

Kevin loved the wildness of the great west and the frontier. He recited lengthy poems of bravery, self-sacrifice and human triumph. “Robert Service and the Yukon Territory” were his favorites but so were any cowboy poems that celebrated men being put to the test and the struggle of doing the right thing in even the most desperate of times.

His humor, loyalty and the bluest of blue smiling eyes will be remembered by those closest to him.