SEAL of Honor (37 page)

At 4:30 PM Steve Wick again called Dan. He said, “Dan, you know, I’ve talked with my other editors. The one thing we don’t want is to get scooped on our own local story by the Washington newspapers. This phone call from the
Post
has got us all abuzz here. We think we are going to go with our story tomorrow.”

Dan cautioned Wick, stating, “You’d better be careful because we all could have egg on our face if you sit here and say something about Michael being under consideration for the Medal of Honor and it doesn’t happen.” Wick acknowledged the risk and hung up.

Newsday
ran a cover story about Michael on February 1, with a large picture of him under the headline banner “HERO. Fallen Navy SEAL from LI is up for nation’s highest combat honor.” Inside was a two-page story. As the source for its story, the paper was able to get Representative Timothy Bishop to admit that Michael Murphy was under consideration for the Medal of Honor.

Later that day Steve Wick called Dan and said, apologetically, “Dan, I hope you understand. We didn’t want to get scooped by the Washington papers.” Dan acknowledged his understanding and ended the call. Dan’s next call was from Representative Bishop, who was also very apologetic. “I hope I didn’t say anything that would cause the family a problem,” he said. Dan was sympathetic toward Bishop and assured him that there would be no problem.

Several minutes after hanging up with Congressman Bishop, Dan received a call from
New York Daily News
reporter James Gordon Meek. Meek is a seasoned war correspondent and was in Afghanistan at the time of Operation Red Wings. He acknowledged reading the
Newsday
story, stating that “there is a lot of buzz going around. Let’s hope that this does not put the kibosh on the medal.” Dan inquired as to his meaning, to which Meek replied, “You know, the military people don’t like to get ahead of themselves. They are really funny about things like that.” Now irritated, Dan replied, “Well, if in fact he is under consideration, what difference does that make? Either Michael did what he did or didn’t.” Then he hung up.

On May 26, 2007, the Patchogue-Medford High School conducted a Memorial Day ceremony honoring Michael. Performing at the event was the U.S. Navy’s elite parachute team, the Leap Frogs.

Kings Park High School established the Lieutenant Michael Patrick Murphy (U.S. Navy) Scholarship Award on June 6, 2007. On June 10, Team Murphy, named in honor of Michael, competed in the Race Across America, a cross-country bicycle event, to raise money for the Naval Special Warfare Foundation.

On June 12 Marcus Luttrell’s book
Lone Survivor
was released without any prior knowledge of the Operation Red Wings families. Michael’s father received a call from
Newsday
’s Steve Wick asking if Dan knew about the book. Dan acknowledged having just learned of the book’s release and was on his way to purchase a copy.

In late August Dan received a telephone call from the Navy extending an invitation to both of Michael’s parents to attend an upcoming ceremony at the Navy Memorial in Washington, D.C., at which the Navy Cross would be awarded posthumously to both Matt Axelson and Danny Dietz. Concerned about Maureen’s emotions, Dan questioned the invitation and Michael’s status. The Navy officer replied, “Don’t worry, you’ll get a sense of what’s going on when you get down there.” Dan agreed, for the family, to attend.

CHAPTER TWENTY

—LIEUTENANT JAMES QUATTROMANI, U.S. Navy (ret.), quoted in “Born to Serve: The Michael Murphy Story,”
Newsday
,
www.newday.com/.../ny/murphy/seal-sg.0.6675676.storygallery

 

 

 

W
hile at his law office on Friday, August 19, 2007, Dan received a telephone call from Vice Admiral Joseph Maguire. Maguire had been promoted and assumed the duties of deputy director for strategic operational planning at the National Counterterrorism Center on June 28, 2007. After an exchange of pleasantries, Maguire said, “I’m not trying to steal anybody’s thunder here, but I want to let you to know that Michael’s Medal of Honor recommendation is on the President’s desk and has been signed by him.” He added that the family would be receiving official notification from the White House at a later date. After several more minutes of catching up, Dan thanked Admiral Maguire for the information and promised to keep it confidential within the family until they were officially notified. Elated, Dan telephoned Maureen to inform her of the news.

A week later, sitting in the sunroom at his home enjoying a leisurely afternoon cup of coffee, Dan casually sorted through the week’s correspondence. It was Saturday, August 25, a rare weekend break from the breakneck pace of his hectic law career. As a devoted husband and father, he balanced the ever-increasing number of personal appearance requests on Michael’s behalf, sitting on corporate boards, and serving our nation’s veterans as the national judge advocate of the Military Order of the Purple Heart.

While his wife, Karen, and her daughter, Kristen, were out shopping, Dan took in the bright late August sun through the enormous full-length windows. The welcome calm and silence was broken only by the occasional passing automobile in this upper-middle-class subdivision outside of Wading River. The ringing telephone startled Dan, who, with a sigh, reached for the cordless receiver and answered. The caller identified himself as Colonel John Martin, chief of military affairs at the
White House. Martin said, “President Bush asked me to call and inform you that he has signed your son’s recommendation for the Medal of Honor.” Dan was asked to keep the information within the family until the White House made an official announcement. Dan thanked Colonel Martin, and agreed to keep the information confidential.

After he finished speaking with Martin, Dan telephoned Maureen to tell her that the Medal of Honor was official and to keep the information within the family until the official White House announcement was made. His next call was to Steve Gilmore, a retired Navy captain, who served as the executive assistant of Naval Special Warfare. He told Gilmore about the news and inquired as to when the official announcement would be made. Gilmore advised him that it would “probably take about two weeks” to coordinate schedules and itineraries between the White House and the Navy.

To begin the Medal of Honor process, Steve Gilmore arrived on Long Island from NSW in San Diego on Tuesday, September 5, and met with both Dan and Maureen at the Suffolk County courthouse in Riverhead. The purpose of the meeting was to get better acquainted with the Murphys and to provide them with a general overview of the entire Medal of Honor process. Gilmore informed the Murphys that the White House ceremony was scheduled for October 22 and inquired as to what else they would like to do while in Washington. After a few minutes of discussion, a general itinerary was worked out. Prior to his departure, Gilmore informed them that he, along with the new NSW commander, Rear Admiral Joseph D. Kernan, and his aide would be returning to meet with them on the twentieth.

Catching a red-eye flight from San Diego, Admiral Kernan, Gilmore, and Kernan’s aide, Commander Bryan Williams, arrived at the Long Island MacArthur Airport midmorning on Tuesday, September 20. They were met by Dan and Maureen. The Murphys took the group to see the Navy SEAL Lt. Michael P. Murphy Memorial Park at Lake Ronkonkoma and described the plans for an upcoming addition of the Serenity Plaza.

No one had eaten, so Dan and Maureen treated everyone to brunch at a local favorite restaurant near the park. After brunch, they went to the post office named after Michael, where postal officials gave them a tour of the facility and detailed their plans for the permanent memorial.

Following the post office tour, everyone enjoyed several hours of talking and looking at mementos of Michael at Dan’s home. Then Steve Gilmore gave them a briefing of the detailed itinerary, which included the ceremony date of October 22. Dan and Maureen also provided a list of things they wanted to do while in Washington. On their way back to the airport, they stopped at the small memorial park at the Navy Industrial Aircraft Facility not far from Dan’s home.

In mid-September, Dan received a telephone call from Martin Evans at
Newsday
, who asked, “Dan, have you heard anything yet?” Dan always made it his practice to never lie to the press. In keeping with that practice, Dan responded, “Martin, I do not lie. All I can tell you is I can’t tell you anything.” Evans responded, “Oh, I understand, and I certainly don’t want to put you on the spot, but let me ask you a hypothetical question. If I were to go on vacation, when should I not go?” Dan laughed and said, “I believe a poor time to go on vacation would be October 22.”

The meetings continued on Sunday, October 9, with the arrival of Lieutenant Commander Tamsen Reese, deputy public affairs officer for the Department of the Navy. At her meeting with Dan and Maureen, also held at the Suffolk County courthouse in Riverhead, she told them she would assist in coordinating the upcoming round of media interviews and appearances in conjunction with the White House announcement and the Medal of Honor ceremony. The first press conference would be on the date of the official announcement in two days’ time.

The official White House announcement was made on Tuesday, October 11, 2007, followed immediately by another announcement by the Department of the Navy. The Navy’s Public Affairs Office having made all the arrangements, the Murphys were escorted into a conference room in the Marriott Courtyard East Side, in Manhattan. All of the major broadcast and print media were represented. After about an hour of taking and answering question, the news conference was closed by Lieutenant Commander Reese, and the Murphy family returned home.

The East Room of the White House seated 250 guests. The Navy claimed 150 seats, while the remaining 100 were given to the Murphy family and split equally between Dan and Maureen. Needing to dole out tickets carefully among the members of their large extended family and friends, Maureen and Dan sat down and developed their list. Maureen’s 50 tickets were quickly allocated to her relatives and Heather. Dan had a smaller family and needed to allocate only about a dozen to relatives.

Dan contacted Owen O’Callaghan and invited the six members of the O’Callaghan family to attend the ceremonies. He also informed Owen that he would like to invite three representatives of the New York City Fire Department, specifically from the fire station whose patch Michael wore. Firefighter Nate Evans, Captain Eugene Kananowicz, and Lieutenant George Brennan were selected. Dan also provided tickets to Patchogue mayor Paul Ponteri, Brookhaven town supervisor Brian X.Foley, Councilman Tim Mazzei, and eight members of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, as well as members of the local bar, court services, law enforcement, postal officials, and retired military. To obtain access to the White
House, complete names, addresses, and Social Security numbers were provided to the Navy for the necessary security background checks.

More than fifty members of the FDNY voiced strong interest in attending the White House ceremonies. Unfortunately, with the limited tickets, this simply would not be possible. Undeterred, the firefighters were determined to make the trip and attend the public ceremonies honoring Michael’s Medal of Honor that were scheduled to be held at the Pentagon’s Hall of Heroes and the Navy Memorial, as well as visit Arlington National Cemetery with the family. A charter bus was obtained through someone’s personal contact. Arrangements were also made for the firefighters to visit the wounded at Walter Reed Medical Center and distribute FDNY hats and T-shirts, which became an annual event.

With the aid of Lieutenant Commander Reese, the Murphys, joined by Marcus Luttrell, conducted another round of news conferences on October 15 and 16, this time at the Marriott Marquis on New York’s Eighth Avenue in Times Square. In addition, the Murphys appeared on
FOX & Friends
, where they were interviewed by Brian Kilmeade, and NBC’s
The Today Show
with Matt Lauer. Numerous other print and broadcast media interviews were conducted.

The Murphy and Jones families left Long Island on an early morning flight from the Long Island MacArthur Airport to the Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport. They arrived just after 10:00 AM and were met by Steve Gilmore. They were taken to the Marriott Hotel in a bus arranged for by the Navy.

After taking a few minutes to freshen up after the flight, Dan, Maureen, and John met with Steve Gilmore and Tamsen Reese in a conference room and were provided detailed briefing books that included a complete itinerary as well as biographies on all the individuals they would meet. After lunch, they all loaded into the bus for the trip to Arlington National Cemetery with a law enforcement escort.

Escorted by two members of a Navy honor guard and Steve Gilmore, Dan, Maureen, and John Murphy were given a tour of America’s premier national cemetery. Arlington National Cemetery, located in Arlington, Virginia, was established
during the Civil War on the grounds of Arlington House, which was the former estate of the family of Robert E. Lee’s wife, Mary Anna Custis Lee, a descendant of Martha Washington. Located near the Pentagon, it is directly across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C. More than 290,000 of this nation’s heroes from the American Revolution to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are buried in its 624 acres. With more than twenty funerals per day and fifty-four hundred per year, it is the nation’s second-largest national cemetery, behind Calverton National Cemetery, which has more than thirty funerals per day and more than seven thousand per year. The Murphy family tour of Arlington was conducted at their request so that they could pay their respects to the men who had served with Michael.