Navy SEAL LT Michael P. Murphy graduated from Patchogue-Medford High School on Long Island, New York, and attended Penn State in the fall of 1994. He completed his four-year program and graduated in the spring of 1998 with a double major in political science and psychology. He was interested in a law school education. As a freshman in 1994, he resided in Sproul Hall on the second floor. He eventually moved into off-campus housing with fellow Penn State students Craig Palmer, Tom McCann, and Marius K., among others.
During his Penn State years, he toyed with the idea of joining the military and special operations, in particular, for both the experience and to protect and preserve the American dream. Michael did not acquire the nickname in high school of “Murph the Protector” on a whim. He had a deep-felt ideology of right and wrong, which propelled him to be the best he could be and led him to Naval Special Warfare as a Navy SEAL.
Of the 196 men who started in Michael’s BUD/s [Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL] class, 18 graduated from the program — four officers, including Michael, and 14 enlisted men — following nine months of rigorous training.
Michael’s story is well known now thanks largely to the best-selling story Lone Survivor by Marcus Luttrell and the Universal blockbuster movie of the same name starring Taylor Kitsch (Tim Riggins of Friday Night Lights fame) portraying Michael in the movie. Michael and his SEAL team do have the historical distinction of being the most highly decorated small unit action in United States Naval history. Michael also is uniquely listed as a Penn State distinguished alumni and the only Medal of Honor recipient in Penn State’s history.
His time at Penn State was the very best of times for him and our family. While he made some trips home to Long Island as he adjusted to Penn State life, those trips became less frequent, except for the holidays. When he was a sophomore and still without a car, he used to take the bus from Penn State to Long Island on Friday afternoons. He would forego the early Sunday morning bus that returned to State College so he could stay at home as long as he possible. Instead, at about 11 p.m., he and I would take the 4- to 5-hour drive to Penn State on I-80, arriving around 3:30 a.m. when I would drop him off at his dorm and do a quick turnaround, getting back home in time to be in my courtroom by 9:30 a.m. for that day’s call of the calendar. These were the best times because Michael and I spent those hours of quality time discussing current affairs and numerous other topics of interest.
It was on one of those Sunday late-night drives back to Penn State that Michael informed me of his interests in being a part of the military and the Special Operations community, specifically the Navy SEALs. I was taken aback because of my Vietnam experience as an Army “grunt” [infantryman] and the serious injuries I had sustained as a part of that war. I recall asking him, “Why!? I thought you wanted to be a lawyer.” His reply was he wanted to help people. It was pure Michael — he believed the only life worth living was a life dedicated in service of others. I could not have been more proud, but also worried since I had experienced war first-hand and had returned from Vietnam with bullet wounds and shrapnel in both legs and a 40-percent disability rating.
As for Michael’s times at Penn State as a student, I know that he enjoyed taking his younger brother, John, who was 10 years younger at the time, to the campus because, as John told us, Michael used to refer to his brother as a “chick magnet.” John, at 8 and 9 years of age when on campus, drew a lot of attention. As for other Penn State stories on campus, as his father I was less privy to those, so I’d leave those for the folks that knew Michael best at Penn State, like Heather Duggan, his fiancée and Penn State graduate, roommates, Craig Palmer, and Tom McCann, among others.
What many folks don’t know is that when Michael’s death in Afghanistan in 2005 was reported, the first condolence call the family received was from Hillary Clinton, who was a Senator from New York at the time, and the second call we received was from Joe Paterno. The next day, the Paternos sent a dozen white roses to Michael’s mother, Maureen. During an event at Penn State thereafter, when Michael was being honored as a distinguished alumni of Penn State, I related this story to the audience, which included Michael Pilato, who created the mural on Hiester Street that includes Michael’s image. Mr. Pilato was so moved by the story and the gesture by Joe Paterno that he drew a white rose by Michael connecting to a white rose in Joe Paterno’s hand to signify the very special bond between the Paternos and the Murphy family.
Michael would be pleased with the honors bestowed on him by Penn State. Not only was the Penn State Class of 2011 gift of the Penn State Veterans Plaza dedicated to him, there is the Navy League of Central Pennsylvania, which awards the LT Michael P. Murphy Distinguished Citizen Award each October. Last year’s awardee was Sue Paterno, and this year’s award went to Tom Cali. There also is the Lt. Michael P. Murphy Award in Geospatial Intelligence, which recognizes significant achievement by a Penn State graduate student who is serving or has served in the US Armed Forces or with the US Intelligence Community and demonstrated exceptional contributions to the discipline.
Finally, my stepdaughter, Kristen Leech-Murphy, is a senior in high school and applying for admission to Penn State, University Park campus, for the fall semester of 2017. On our visits back to the campus with Kristen, she fell in love with the staff, students, and Penn State life, and it is her first and foremost choice to attend Penn State. I look forward to those drives on I-80 with Kristen as I did with Michael.
Navy SEAL LT Michael P. Murphy was an exceptional person, and the most recent honor bestowed on him is the building of the LT Michael P. Murphy Navy SEAL Museum/Sea Cadet Training Facility on Suffolk County parklands in West Sayville, New York. This building will house the first Navy SEAL museum in the northeast, as well as a sea cadet training facility for our future leaders.
Michael’s favorite saying was “Education will set you free,” and he would have been proud to be associated with a building dedicated to the education of our citizens to the exploits of our Navy special operation forces, as well as the training of future leaders.
