AllAgesView
By Sofia Johnson
In 2006, Madison Murphy, a junior at Modesto High School at the time, and her father, Chris Murphy, founder of Modesto View, had an idea to add an All-Ages column to the magazine. After graduating high school and passing the column to her younger sister, Abbey Murphy, Madison attended the University of California, Berkeley and double majored in Global Marketing and French. Madison has since moved back to Modesto with her husband Ryan and works as Manager for Social & App Store Engagement for Adobe Software.
In 2008, Abbey Murphy received the column from her older sister as she entered her freshman year at Modesto High. Abbey followed Madison’s footsteps and attended her sister’s alma mater, Cal Berkeley, with a double major in History and Peace and Conflict (Diplomacy). Today, Abbey lives in Modesto with her husband Harrison and works for Sierra Pacific Warehouse Group as a Sales and Marketing Manager.
In 2013, the All-Ages Column was passed to Leia Johnson, my older sister and an incoming eighth grader at La Loma Junior High who would later attend Thomas Downey High School. After graduating from Downey in 2018, Leia went on to attend Chico State University where she is currently majoring in psychology.
In 2018, my older sister would then pass the column onto me as I entered my sophomore year at Downey. Since then, I have had the absolute honor to write about Modesto, the place I love most, and follow the footsteps of three of the most inspiring and influential women. However, in only two short weeks, I enter a new chapter of my life that will take place in San Luis Obispo, California as I attend Cal Poly for Environmental Earth and Soil Sciences.
I will bring the passion that I have for my community with me to Southern California,
however, I hope to eventually move back to Modesto after college, just as Abbey and Madison have, to continue to spread the love I have for this city.
This month, I will be passing the All-Ages column onto my dear friend, Grace McNamara, who is also an active member of our community. Grace has recently entered her sophomore year at Downey where she is involved in dance production, dance line, and water polo. I have full faith that Grace will capture the spirit of our town and I am excited to see what she is going to bring to the table. Best of luck Grace McNamara!
