Patricia Joan “Trish” Murphy was born in Blue Island and raised in Crestwood – two of the vibrant communities in Worth Township, where she serves as both the Supervisor and Democratic Committeeperson. While rooted in Worth Township, Trish’s service extends throughout the 6th District and across the State of Illinois. It’s not only a commitment to the community, but also her legacy.
The Murphy Family – A Legacy of Service
Trish is the daughter of Joan Patricia and Donald Francis Murphy. Her mother, the late Joan Patricia Murphy, dedicated over 50 years to public service and broke barriers as the first woman to hold each office she was elected to, including Clerk of Crestwood, Clerk of Worth Township, Supervisor of Worth Township, and Cook County Commissioner for the 6th District. Her father, the late Donald Francis Murphy, proudly served in the United States Army Air Corps and was a 55-year member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 134.
Trish grew up alongside three brothers, each embodying the family’s deep commitment to service and hard work. Her late brother served in the United States Air Force and was a proud member of the International Brotherhood of Carpenters Local 10. One of her brothers serves as an educator and administrator, while another carries on the family tradition as an IBEW Local 134 electrician.
The Murphy family’s story is one rooted in dedication—to community, to country, and to the labor movement. Trish proudly comes from a long line of union tradesmen and women, a legacy carried forward from her grandparents to the generations that followed.
Trish’s Story:
Trish grew up watching her mother, the late Cook County Commissioner, Joan Patricia Murphy, become a trailblazer for women to be able to successfully run for office. Her mother was the first woman elected in each position she held, i.e. Clerk of Crestwood, Clerk of Worth Township, Supervisor of Worth Township, and Cook County Commissioner 6th District, where she served 14 years before her passing. In fact, she was the first woman to be elected in 128 years of township government. Without even realizing it, Trish started getting her political “chops” as a young child as her mother knocked on doors with four small children in tow, while she collected signatures, asked about constituents’ concerns, and asked for support. Trish grew up stuffing envelopes, walking in parades, but also witnessed people coming to the door asking for help and watching her mother do whatever she could to help them. Trish’s father was also a huge influence on her life. He was always there to help anyone and was the kind of guy who would “give you the shirt off his back” if you were in need. Trish developed her “caretaker” personality by watching her parents help so many people.
Trish thought every kid sat at the kitchen table with the adults who allowed them to listen or even participate in conversations that could have covered national or local politics, schools, kids’ welfare, veterans’ struggles, business, community needs, workers’ rights, or many other topics, depending on who was at the table that day. She remembers her mom, a South Boston native, telling her story about coming home from school one day, seeing JFK on television. Her mom said she was glued to the TV, and that is where her interest in public office started, and it was a part of Trish’s life from day one. Being able to vote was such a privilege, Trish thought of it like a rite of passage, and couldn’t wait to be able to vote. Trish’s mom even held voter registration drives at her high school. Once 18, Trish helped with voter registrations, was excited to finally be old enough to help collect signatures for her mom, and worked as an election judge.
During her mother’s career, Trish often accompanied her mother in her travels, whether to local Democratic Organization meetings, meetings with Labor leaders, senior and veteran events she organized, several DNCs where her mother served as a delegate, the National Association of County Officials (NACO) meetings, and even a trip to Cook County’s Sister Cities Trip to Turkey.
Trish remembers thinking, “I want to contribute to this conversation”, “I can see myself in this room”. However, with all the exposure to the political world and how it operated, Trish saw all sides, the good, the bad, and the ugly of it all. She was drawn to helping people and the job, but did not like the bad or ugly side of elections. So, while always helping with her mother’s and many other candidates’ elections, Trish’s professional life took her in a different direction.
Trish is a graduate of Boston University with a BS in Marketing. She spent a few years working for companies in sales and marketing in Boston, Chicago, and Los Angeles. Realizing she was an entrepreneur at heart, Trish came back to Chicago intending to start her own business. She opened several kiosks and an in-line store at Chicago’s Navy Pier, with seasonal locations in Illinois, Michigan, and New Orleans. Trish didn’t just run her businesses; she invested in her employees. She formed an entrepreneurial incubator by creating a mentoring program. Mentees learned skills from writing business plans, taking a product from wholesale to retail, and connecting with other entrepreneurs, manufacturers, and vendors to meet, learn from. Trish financed and chaperoned a capstone trip to a trade show in New York, where the group practiced the skills learned.
Trish loved her work, but believed family was everything, so when her mother became ill, she closed her business, moved back to her childhood home, took over the family real estate business, took over her mother’s role in for the care of her grandmother, and became her mother’s full-time caregiver. In the beginning stages of her breast cancer, Trish’s mom was still working full time. While accompanying her mother, people from all over the district would pull Trish aside or whisper in her ear how her mom touched their life or how she helped them, their community, their organization or their business.
While her mother would always hint at her desire to have Trish run for office, she began really encouraging her to run. Trish said to her mother, “I don’t want to run for office, I don’t want people being mean or making up things about me, like they did to you” and “I want everyone to get along”. Her mother responded, by saying “you could help so many more people in this arena, than one person at a time with your business”. She continued with “you have to get a thick skin, then develop amnesia afterward”. She also would say “please take care of the people I have cared for so much over the last 50 years, you are the only one who will take care of them like I did, then said “you were made for this” and “you’ll be good at this, you will even do more than I did because you have me and your dad in you and you are a care taker, you need people to take care of”. Her mother continued to suggest this new path to her daughter. Finally, after hearing so many people tell her how her mother helped them, Trish thought about her mom’s decades of work, all the good she had done, and her legacy. Trish then thought about the legacy she wants to leave behind when she leaves this planet. She realized that “mothers know best” and told her mother, she would run for her office. Trish told her she wants to dedicate her life to being a public servant with the goal of helping as many people in as many places as she can for as long as she has the gift of life.
Public Service Career:
Trish fulfilled her promise to her mother and in 2018 ran for the Cook County Commissioner 6th District seat left open by her mother as well as the Worth Township Democratic Committeeperson. She did not win the Cook County Commissioner race but did win the Committeeperson seat thus starting her official political career. She was elected Worth Township Democratic Committeeperson, which is a volunteer position in 2018, 2022, and is up for re-election in 2026.
In 2019 she was asked if she would be interested in running for the Moraine Valley Community College (MVCC) Board because someone left the board and there was a two-year spot open. Tricia won in 2019 and was re-elected in 2021 to serve a full six-year term. Tricia was elected by her fellow board members to be the MVCC representative on the Illinois Community College Trustees Association (ICCTA). ICCTA serves all 48 Illinois Community Colleges, she accepted the roll and ran with it and has held the positions of Vice Chair then Chair of Government Relations and Public Policy, Secretary, Vice President, and currently serving as President of ICCTA. She also serves on two committees for the Association of Community Colleges (ACCT) which serves all Community Colleges Nationally. While all work on the MVCC board, ICCTA, and ACCT is voluntary, Tricia loves advocating for Community Colleges to help students be successful.
In 2021, Tricia worked to put together a coalition ticket for the Worth Township Board of Trustees. She won the office of Worth Township Supervisor making her only the second woman to hold that office with her mother, Joan Patricia Murphy, being the first. There was a lot of work to do when she took over the office in 2021 and with the help of her supportive board and the great staff at Worth Township, they accomplished a lot in their first term. A few accomplishments to highlight would be bringing back the senior transportation program lost during COVID. It was brought back bigger, better, and modernized. Saw the need for a walk-in cooler for the Food Pantry, found one and was able to have it donated. Expanded the food pantry by taking over the Clerks office, then giving up the Board Room so the Clerk’s office has a space, then using a room in the basement for the board room. The food pantry needs grew even greater, so took over a conference room to make space for glass front refrigerators. They upgraded systems, created a new Mantra of “Here to Serve”, created a new logo, website, marketing materials, and placed signage throughout and on the building so residents know where to go. Also installed a new 16ft digital sign in front of the Worth Township administration building, so anyone who drives by knows what the building is, the services we offer, and who their elected officials are. They built a park! With no parks on the east side of Pulaski Road for miles, the board built a park on the property for all residents to enjoy. The park features a walking path, benches, picnic tables with umbrellas with solar lighting as well as pavilions, a Little Tikes playground, a community garden with raised garden beds and a water retention pond with a water feature. These and other projects were paid for by much appreciated grants of which they are most grateful for.
With the goal of being fiscally responsible, Worth Township board also put a resolution on the ballot for constituents to choose whether to abolish the Road District or not. The vote passed, now the Road District operates as a department within the township as the Highway Department allowing for shared resources, more transparency, and the ability to green light projects that otherwise would not be possible.
Trish created a veteran’s department at Worth Township where veterans can come for help with services, visit socially, or come to the Veterans dinner or the Salute to Our Armed Forces events both attract well over 100 Veterans, both events give an opportunity to show appreciation and honor these men and women for their service.
Tricia and her slate were elected for a second term in April 2025
Boards and Organizations:
Tricia served as a trustee on the Illinois Clean Energy Community Foundation from 2021 until it was absolved in 2023 where she was elected by her fellow trustees to serve on the Clean Energy and the Net Zero Building Committee, Chair of the Audit Committee, and Secretary. Helped award over $70 million worth of Grants while serving.
Tricia serves on the board of Tattoo Art Therapy (TAT) / 501 (c)(3), this program is dedicated to helping people who are tattooed, scarred, braded and or burnt from negative experiences to transform the unavoidable, painful reminders of the past into art pieces that promote growth and ultimate healing.
Tricia is a member of several Chambers of Commerce, Environmental Organizations, Township, State, and National Democratic Organizations
Eight years of learning and serving, and a lifetime of experience, Trish is ready and running for Cook County Commissioner Board in the 6th District.
Her diverse background in business, governance, and politics makes her knowledgeable and ready to serve as the Cook County Commissioner 6th district. Anyone that knows her knows she is in it to be a true public servant, she shows up and always does the very best she can for everyone she serves and looks forward to serving the 6th district and all the residence of Cook County.
