Theresa "Tess" Mary Malumphy

Theresa Mary (Tess) Malumphy was born on April 2, 1932 to Katherine (Dorsey) and Richard J. Malumphy in Hartford, Connecticut. She was wonderfully and gloriously received into God’s presence on December 29, 2022 at Grace Pointe Senior Care Community in Greeley, Colorado.

Shortly after her birth the family moved to Tess’s beloved Berkshire Mountains of Western Massachusetts where she grew up in the small farming town of Richmond, which she always referred to as “home”. Tess attended public schools and graduated from Pittsfield High School. Tess earned a Bachelor’s degree at Bridgewater State University, a Master’s degree from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and a Ph.D. from Ohio State University. Tess enjoyed opportunities for post-doctoral study of brain anatomy, neurophysiology and DNA at Northwestern University, Oregon State University, and Colorado State University.

Tess taught at New Britain High School in Connecticut and the Universities of Wisconsin, North Dakota, and Oregon until finding her permanent home at her beloved University of Northern Colorado (UNC). Tess was at UNC for 22 years in what she described as the “most perfect job.” In her three years as UNC’s Academic Associate Vice President for Curriculum, Tess along with faculty from Arts and Sciences were awarded a grant to develop the Life of the Mind Program which received the Governor’s Award for Excellence. Tess’s research areas involved gender role development, date violence, and feminist theology. She received a departmental scholar award for her research, and in 1978 she was named the winner of the M. Lucille Harrison professor of the year award which recognized her long career of professional excellence in teaching as well as in professional activity and service.

Tess was an avid reader, hiker, and backpacker. Her love for the mountains was evidenced in her work with crews developing The Colorado Trail. Tess was an active community volunteer and was known as the “mother” of Friends of A Woman’s Place. In recognition of her volunteer service in support of survivors of domestic violence over the years, Tess was a recipient of the Denver Channel 9 News, statewide “9Who Care” award in 2015.

Following retirement from UNC, Tess worked for 29 years as a peer counselor with North Range Behavioral Health, sharing her compassion and humor with her numerous elderly clients as well as with her counselor colleagues. Her main assignment was visiting nursing home residents, many feeling lonely, depressed and abandoned by family. Tess’s empathy and compassion brought peace and hope to her clients.

Tess lived a life of deep faith. She was a member of St. Mary’s Church in Greeley where she served actively as a lector and a Eucharistic minister. She was an Associate of the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, supporting its core values of freedom, education, charity and justice.

Tess had a gift for lighting up any room and for making anyone she was with feel special. She had an impish streak of humor and an Irish twinkle in her eye. She was a model of strength, courage and faith, even as she faced and overcame cancer and lived with other health challenges. She was always quick to express her appreciation to Grace Pointe staff and others who called, visited or helped her in any way. She was an inspiration to all who knew her.

Tess was a teacher, a leader, a mentor, a counselor, a warrior of faith, fairness, and peace. Of equal significance to all these accomplishments, Tess was a devoted daughter, a beloved sister, an adored Aunt, a Godmother, a friend, and a true confidant. Although she left her small town home to pursue her dreams, inspire change, and make a difference in the world, she was never far away in heart. No matter where she was or what she was doing, she always made sure that her family back home knew her love. They felt the strength of it, the depth of it, the constancy of it, and the comfort of it. Tess was generous in many ways, but most especially with her love.

Those who are left grieving the loss of Tess are her long-time mentor and friend, Nancy Van Anne, her nieces Carol Broderick, Lisa Buchinski, Dorsey Hydon, and her nephews Gerald Coppola, Craig Coppola, and Bernard Malumphy. Tess also leaves many great nieces and nephews and extended family throughout New England. Tess was predeceased by her parents, Richard J. and Katherine Dorsey Malumphy, her brother Richard “Jim” Malumphy, and her sister-in-law and friend, Corinne Malumphy.

A Mass of Celebration for Tess will be held on Thursday, January 26th at 9:30 AM at St. Peter Catholic Church, 915 12th St., Greeley CO. A reception will follow the service. A private family inurnment celebration will be at St. Patrick's Catholic Cemetery, 30 Albany Rd, West Stockbridge, Massachusetts in the Spring of 2023.

Contributions in Tess’s name will be gratefully received and may be made in Tess’s name to Friends of a Woman’s Place, PO Box 337751, Greeley, CO 80633 or in care of Stoddard Funeral Home.