Just before 9:00pm on Monday, September 15, Grace Lynn Murrell, was peacefully welcomed Home into the kingdom of Heaven. Surrounded by love and comfort, she found rest in the arms of her Savior. Our hearts ache deeply with this great loss, but we find hope and reassurance knowing that she is now rejoicing in the glorious place that has been prepared for her and she is once again reunited with Doyle, her soulmate and husband of nearly 75 years.
Grace Lynn dedicated her full and vibrant ninety-three years of life to service and stewardship. She exemplified graciousness, generosity, humility, and hospitality. Grace prioritized faith and family above all things, and her devotion to both was unwavering and enduring. She lived out God’s greatest commandment to “love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind” and showed everyone exactly what it looked like to “Love thy neighbor as thyself.” She and Doyle shared a legendary lifetime of love, and their example of selflessness and servanthood is the foundation of their family. Their pure and genuine love for one another was evident in everything they did. Grace’s four treasured children, nine grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren were jewels in her crown, and her pride for all of them was palpable. She and Doyle were integral members of Brownfield Baptist Church for the entire marriage, and their love of the Lord was reflected by their commitment and affection for their community. Over the years, she served on countless church committees and hosted many book clubs with cherished friends. She was an extraordinarily talented pianist, and whether from the church pews every Sunday morning or in her cozy living room, her loved ones would all gather as close as they could to watch her hands dance across the keys as she played. Music was her ministry, and her home and her heart were always filled with song.
Grace had a way of creating, noticing, and highlighting beauty and goodness in all that she did, and she humbly shared that beauty with others everywhere she went. She loved bright colors, flowers, desserts, make-up, perfumes, and decorating. She was a wonderful listener who always had time to lend an ear and a word of encouragement. One of her favorite pastimes was enjoying the breeze from her porch swing that overlooked the farm. Grace Lynn was kind and gentle; sharp as a tack and quick as a whip. She carried a quiet, steadfast strength and personified her nickname, “Amazing Grace.” A classic, polished Southern Belle, Grace was impeccably polite, well-mannered, and detail-oriented. As a Wife, Mother, and Grandma, she was warm, patient, forgiving, and fun. She tenderly and lovingly took care of everyone around her, often by baking and cooking the most delicious meals and inviting everyone—family, friends, and strangers—into her comforting home. She and Doyle lived in the same house along the dirt road that runs through their family farm for 74 years. Together, they built a refuge and sanctuary where family and friends gathered for every holiday, important event, and slow, Sunday afternoons. There was no better feeling than walking through Grace’s front door and smelling the delicious aromas coming from the kitchen and hearing, “Hi, Honey! Come on in!” Her loved ones always squeezed to fit in another spot at her table—adding stools, piano benches, overturned buckets, and anything else we could use as a chair—and many of our most sacred memories were made together there. It brings great joy to picture so many loved ones gathered around her table once again in Heaven and knowing that they are saving a spot for all of us to join someday.
The veil between Heaven and Earth has been thin over the past year and a half, as Doyle has awaited the arrival of his beloved bride. As Alzheimer’s lingered in Grace’s beautiful and brilliant mind, she often reached for her most familiar thoughts and asked her family every day, “Where’s Dad?” Her eyes would drift to another place when they’d reply that he’s still out milking or sometimes answered honestly that he’s waiting for us in Heaven. Just as they told each other every day in life, Grace reminded us over and over how very much she loved Doyle and how very much they treasured being together. We like to imagine he’s been waiting on a bench, legs crossed and hands clasped, as he did so many times outside department stores as she shopped. Never in a rush, waiting patiently until Grace was finished with her adventure, having taken her time and made friends with everyone in the shop. She would always pick out the prettiest outfits and most beautiful pieces to decorate their home, and she’d always be sneaking in a sweet treat to share on the way home. Grace and Doyle were everyone’s favorites, but most of all, she was his and he was hers.
Doyle always loved to tell everyone about when he first met his Grace Lynn, not yet his wife, mother of their children, or treasured grandmother, but an eighteen year old blonde haired, blue-eyed beauty from Kentucky. He said he would go pick her up at her parents’ tobacco farm and she would come walking out along the sidewalk in her high heels. He’d never seen anything so beautiful, and he made sure to remind Grace Lynn of how beautiful she was every day for the next 74 years. A spark would flicker in her eyes each time he’d tell this story, and as she blushed, everyone knew they both still saw one another in the same way they did all those years ago. We imagine that as they reunited in Heaven—this time to spend the rest of all eternity together—he looked up from the place he’s been waiting and once again saw that stunningly beautiful blue-eyed girl in her high heels, ready to take his hand and walk together into everything that awaits them. Arm in arm as they’ve always been, we find comfort knowing that this reunion is forever.
Grace leaves to continue her legacy four children, Scott Murrell and his wife Debra of Lebanon, MO, Nancy Gail Wallace of Springfield, MO, Gregory Murrell and his wife Sherryl of Falcon, MO, and John Jeffrey Murrell and his wife Danette of Allen, TX; grandchildren, Aaron Murrell and his wife Sandra of Joplin, MO, Lauren Willis and her husband Van of Pensacola, FL, Andrew Murrell of Portland, OR, Chelsea Marrocco and her husband Michael of Springfield, MO, Steven Murrell of Philadelphia, PA, Koby Murrell and his wife Raiven of Lebanon, MO, Tessa Murrell and her husband Seth Hamilton of Savannah, GA, Delayna Murrell of Allen, TX and Samantha Murrell, also of Allen, TX; great-grandchildren, Jackson Willis, Ellison Marrocco, Ella Willis, Lily Marrocco and Ethan Willis; Adored relative, Patricia Roberts of Louisville, KY; several cherished nieces and nephews; special bonus family members, an incredible church community, and many dear friends.
She is preceded in death by her parents, Chester Arthur and Della Kate (Purvis) Gregory; Her beloved husband, Doyle; three brothers, Leslie, Curtis, and Gayle Gregory; two sisters, Hallie Gregory and Willie Mae Gregory-Roberts; and daughter-in-law, Pamela Murrell.
Memorial Donations can be made to Brownfield Baptist Church. Donations can be left at or mailed to Shadel’s Colonial Chapel, P.O.Box 948, Lebanon, MO 65536.
Services will be held at Shadel’s Colonial Chapel in Lebanon, Missouri on Monday, September 22, 2025. Visitation will begin at 12:00pm and a funeral will follow at 1:00pm.
A private, family burial will take place at a later time.
Arrangements are under the direction of Shadel’s Colonial Chapel of Lebanon. Sign guest book at www.shadelscolonialchapel.com.
