LCDR Patrick Jude Murphy, USNR, was one of the victims of the terrorist attack on the Pentagon on September 11, 2001.  As an active member of the Naval Reserve, LCDR Murphy was performing a two-week active duty assignment with the Navy Command Center, standing duty when the attack offered.  A 1981 graduate of Marian Catholic High School in Chicago, he signed up for ROTC and received a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering at the University of Mississippi in 1986.  He was commissioned an Ensign on May 21, 1986, in the Nuclear Propulsion program.  That same year, he married his wife Masako Nagasawa.   Following nuclear power plant training, Murphy served on USS SAND LANCE (SSN-660) as leader of Electrical, Reactor Control and Damage Control divisions. 

In 1991, Murphy left active duty to pursue a career in Chemical Engineering.  He then worked for firms including Brach’s Confections, Inc. and the Alberto Culver Company in Chicago. He recently received an MBA degree from the University of Chicago and shortly thereafter moved with his family to New Jersey.  He maintained his connection with the Navy, serving in a number of positions with the Naval Reserve and performing duty with the Chief of Naval Operations branch of the Pentagon. He completed a course of study at the Naval War College in International Relations and Strategic Studies in 1999.  Murphy was a man of many interests, well-traveled, and a student of history.  He had visited many countries in Europe and Asia, and enjoyed meeting people and learning different cultures.  Most importantly, he loved spending time with his family.  LCDR Murphy was a loving, devoted and loyal husband, father, son, brother and uncle.  He has been described as an intensely profound man who strongly believed in family, God and country.  He gave his life for these beliefs.

LCDR Murphy is survived by his wife of 15 years and his two young children.  His ashes have been interred at Arlington National Cemetery.

Submitted by CDR Roy A. Mosteller, USNR (Ret)