Engineers Week 2019
Growing up, Tyler Shane Murray wasn’t really sure why his dad was so often away from home. A Marine Corps Major, Mikeal Murray was there one day and gone the next. It was tough, Tyler recalls. The family was also moving constantly and when his dad was deployed, his mother, Patricia, took on the load of two parents, rearing Tyler and his younger brother.
Today, 20-year-old Tyler is studying Engineering at East Carolina University in North Carolina. His father, a highly decorated Marine, served for 22 years before retiring because of injuries he sustained in Ramadi, Iraq in 2006. Along with a Purple Heart, the senior Murray received the defense Meritorious Service Medal four times, the MC Action Ribbon and more. To Tyler, he’s an inspiration.
Tyler shares his father’s commitment to physical toughness as a college swimmer and a fierce competitor in Marine Corps Mud Runs.
The races, says Tyler, are designed to test contestants in myriad ways, from endurance over long distances to overcoming obstacles including deep mud pits. “I enjoyed the challenge of the races and the fact that the purpose of the race was to get covered in mud…always fun to get down in the dirt.”
Tyler is also getting down to the books in his Engineering major with an Electrical Engineering concentration. His studies are supported in part by a ThanksUSA/TwinLogic Strategies scholarship.
Growing up, Tyler Shane Murray wasn’t really sure why his dad was so often away from home. A Marine Corps Major, Mikeal Murray was there one day and gone the next. It was tough, Tyler recalls. The family was also moving constantly and when his dad was deployed, his mother, Patricia, took on the load of two parents, rearing Tyler and his younger brother.
Today, 20-year-old Tyler is studying Engineering at East Carolina University in North Carolina. His father, a highly decorated Marine, served for 22 years before retiring because of injuries he sustained in Ramadi, Iraq in 2006. Along with a Purple Heart, the senior Murray received the defense Meritorious Service Medal four times, the MC Action Ribbon and more. To Tyler, he’s an inspiration.
Tyler shares his father’s commitment to physical toughness as a college swimmer and a fierce competitor in Marine Corps Mud Runs.
The races, says Tyler, are designed to test contestants in myriad ways, from endurance over long distances to overcoming obstacles including deep mud pits. “I enjoyed the challenge of the races and the fact that the purpose of the race was to get covered in mud…always fun to get down in the dirt.”
Tyler is also getting down to the books in his Engineering major with an Electrical Engineering concentration. His studies are supported in part by a ThanksUSA/TwinLogic Strategies scholarship.
Speaking of his military upbringing Tyler says, “His time in the Marine Corps has helped mold me into the person I am today in various ways. I have become more adaptive to situations due to the ever-changing lifestyle of the Marine Corps,” adding that “…during the times my father was home, he embedded the ethics and morals the Marine Corps had given to him…his work ethic and his belief in integrity.”
And belief in service. No, Tyler is not headed toward a military career but is planning instead to become a computer hardware designer and a leader. “I would like to serve by teaching young people about the field of engineering. This will help prepare future engineers to innovate and serve their communities as well."
His father, he’ll tell you, prepared him well. “He gave me a desire to serve my country, but in my way and with my gifts and interests,” Tyler explains.
"Being raised in a military family and hearing the stories of those who have fought in wars and laid down everything to keep this nation secure, I have seen the value in service."
And belief in service. No, Tyler is not headed toward a military career but is planning instead to become a computer hardware designer and a leader. “I would like to serve by teaching young people about the field of engineering. This will help prepare future engineers to innovate and serve their communities as well."
His father, he’ll tell you, prepared him well. “He gave me a desire to serve my country, but in my way and with my gifts and interests,” Tyler explains.
"Being raised in a military family and hearing the stories of those who have fought in wars and laid down everything to keep this nation secure, I have seen the value in service."
