Warship Built in U.S. Bears Name of Navy SEAL
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Maureen Murphy, mother of Medal of Honor recipient and U.S. Navy SEAL, Lt. Michael Murphy, christens the ship baring his name during a ceremony at the Bath Iron Works shipyard in Bath, Maine on Saturday, May 7, 2011, what would've been Murphy's 35th birthday. The mother of a Navy SEAL from Maine killed in Afghanistan said "Happy birthday, baby" before smashing a bottle of Champagne against a Navy ship that bears her son's name.
BATH, Maine -- The mother of a Navy SEAL from New York killed in Afghanistan said "Happy birthday, baby" before smashing a bottle of Champagne against a ship in Maine that bears her son's name.
The destroyer under construction at Maine's Bath Iron Works bears the name of Lt. Michael Murphy, a Long Island resident who was killed in a firefight on June 28, 2005, in eastern Afghanistan. The ceremony was held Saturday on what would've been Murphy's 35th birthday and nearly a week after Navy SEALs killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan.
Murphy's mother, Maureen, asked for a moment of silence before reading the names of all 19 service members who died in the firefight and rescue attempt.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Joining 3,000 spectators were New York firefighters, SEALs from Hawaii and the Special Operations Command's leader.