NORFOLK, Va. — The Hampton Roads cornhole community came together on Sunday to pay tribute to U.S. Navy Chief, Tyler Murphy, who died as a result of an altercation at a bar in Virginia Beach.
"He was a true patriot,” said Murphy’s friend Gray Livingston. “His favorite holiday was the Fourth of July. Unfortunately, this year, we know what happened on the Fourth of July.”
In the early morning hours of July 5, Virginia Beach Police said a man hit Murphy with his car. He died the next day at age 40.
Now, longtime friends like Gray Livingston are honoring Murphy by playing the game he loved.
“Before his deployment, he actually snuck a couple cornhole boards on the boat before it shipped overseas, so he could practice while he was over there,” Livingston said.
In Norfolk on Sunday people gathered for a memorial cornhole tournament. Organizer Mike Hopkins said half of the proceeds raised will go to the Navy Seal Foundation.
“People get to play cornhole, watch football and have a couple beers,” Hopkins said. “And that is the way Murph would want it.”
Both friends said their weekly cornhole games, and competitions will never be the same.
“Would give you the shirt off his back, just a great guy,” Livingston said. “He is truly missed.”
“It’s a tragedy,” Hopkins said. “I just wish he was here to be honest with you. I wish I was playing cornhole with him.”
But they hope this tournament catches on to keep Murphy’s memory alive.
“I have had a lot of people say, hey if this is really successful, maybe we will do it annually,” Hopkins said. “I promised we were going to not let him be forgotten.”
Tyler Murphy’s dad told 13News Now his son served as a Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewman.