Gail J. Murphy, Insurance Agent

Gail J. Murphy of Montauk, who worked for   John Ecker Inc., a Montauk insurance brokerage from the time she was in high school until her final illness, died at home on Sunday. She was 55 and had had breast cancer for about four years.

Ms. Murphy was “a warmhearted, generous soul” who “always reached out to help others,” her family said, and “touched the lives of so many with great compassion.” A member of the Montauk Community Church, she had been its treasurer as well as an elder and the clerk of the session. She had also been a member of the Montauk Village Association.

Ms. Murphy was born at Southampton Hospital on April 24, 1961, one of the two daughters of Robert Miller and the former Marion Bennett of Amagansett, both of whom survive. She is also survived by her husband, Daniel Murphy, a sister, Judy Miller of Amagansett, and a cousin, Maureen Murphy of Virginia. She went to the Springs School and to East Hampton High School, graduating with the class of 1979. She earned an associate’s degree from Suffolk County Community College.

According to her family, Ms. Murphy was a loyal, dedicated, and valued employee at the John Ecker agency, who “confidently navigated her clients through their insurance woes.”

The family received visitors yesterday at the Yardley and Pino Funeral Home in East Hampton. A 10 a.m. funeral service was to be held today at the Montauk Community Church, with burial to follow at Green River Cemetery in Springs. Donations in her memory to East End Hospice, P.O. Box 1048, Westhampton Beach, 11978-7048, have been suggested.