I was born in Grand Falls, Newfoundland in 1975 and lived all over the province. My parents were Salvation Army officers, so we moved a lot and I grew up around giving and charity. A few years I volunteered with the “Happy Tree” with the Salvation Army and got to play Santa Claus to families in need.
In 1994 while outside Bayshore Mall in Ottawa, Ontario I was involved in a altercation with three guys and all I remember from that night is trying to defend myself from them and having one guy in a headlock.
I remember hearing “Oh Shit lets go” I started to walk away and then felt this horrible pain in my upper left leg. I put my hand down and when I looked at my hand it looked like something out of a scene in Dexter. I fell to the ground and remember a crowd of people looking at me. There was a older woman holding my hand and she ended up getting in the ambulance with me.
I had suffered several lacerations and thirteen major stab wounds on my body. The two in my leg severed the muscle and it was basically as the doctor said, “Holding on by a thread”. I spent a long three months on the couch and had to learn how to walk again as a result of the surgery on my leg.
When a lot of people hear that story, they say how horrible it was that this happened to me for me it was the best thing that ever happened to me. That may sound crazy but by the end of this write up you will get why. First Responders saved my life that night and would not be here to type this if it had not of been for them so once a month, I would randomly drop a tin of coffee off to a random firehall as my small way of saying thanks.
In 2007 I received a Facebook message from a close friend of mine that was serving with the Canadian Forces in Afghanistan. He was so excited as they were opening a Tim Hortons on the base over there and couldn’t wait to get a “Taste Of Home” I asked him if they were going to have to pay for it and that’s when the idea hit me. At the time Tims had the old paper gift certificates so I thought what if people sent over paper certificates with messages of support on the back of them. “Tim Hortons For Our Troops” was official.
With help from VOCM News in NL and City news in Toronto picking up the story on my small growing Facebook page people from all over the country wanted to take part. I did not want these cards coming to me so I reached out to the Military Family Resource Center in Toronto and they agreed to be the landing point. The page continued to grow and in the first year we sent over $100,000 in gift certificates, all with messages of support on the back.
We also took on new efforts such as setting people up as pen pals, introducing military family members together and a support network for currently serving soldiers and Veterans. The page at one point grow to over 4 million members. However, the creators of the “Causes” application were making money running banners on top of the page so I decided to shut it down and go back to a regular page.
In 2010 I came up with an idea of “The Gratitude Project” a request for people to send photos holding “Thank You” signs for Veterans and currently serving soldiers from all over the world. I was floored with photos and received enough to make ten YouTube videos. The biggest shock was opening my email and seeing a photo from Gene Simmons and Shannon Tweed holding a Thank You sign and posting about it on their social media. In total I received over 10,000 photos also including some from Trooper, Jason McCoy, Schools, companies and regular citizens. It was quite overwhelming.
July 1st, 2014 the happiest day of my life and the scariest day at the same time. My wife and I were expecting our first child and when our daughter came into the world all I heard was “Code Green” and tons of doctors came running in to the room. A nurse took a chair in the corner facing the other way and passed our new baby to me. I was so scared staring down at her with my heart beaming but worried sick about my wife.
She needed a transfusion and thankfully made it, or I would have been a single dad. It was at this point that I took a step back from my efforts and let things run themselves. Being a dad was the single greatest thing that ever happened to me and I wanted to focus on that.
I decided I needed to try and get healthy, so I decided to go to World Health Gym to attempt to change my life. I was on an exercise bike and two guys behind me were laughing at the back of my neck and referring to it as a “Package of Sausages” Dealing with PTSD for many years this messed with my mind and I left and didn’t go back.
In 2018 I was at the playground with our daughter and she wanted to race home. I said, “Sorry sweetie you know daddy can’t run”. With my leg injuries I used that as an excuse and blew up to almost 400lbs. The look of disappointment on her face was enough to light my fire. I set out on a plan to lose 100lbs in a year and I would donate $1 a pound to my favourite military charity.
Ten months into this mission I had dropped almost 80lbs, so I went on a Facebook page called “Calgary Roast & Toast” and decided to post a thank you to those two guys mocking me for the extra motivation. I received a message from Jon & Warren at Southpaw Boxing Gym here in Calgary. They told me their establishment was a “Family” and there is no judgement. They invited me to come try it out and ended up giving me a one-year membership to make sure I reach my goals.
Boxing has changed my life, I am in the best shape I’ve ever been in both mentally and physically. I’ve dropped 155lbs and all that despite two gym shutdowns due to the pandemic. The old Dave would have failed miserably but not this time. I have worked with some amazing trainers in the last two years and I am so thankful for Southpaw. I am still plugging away and donating $1 a pound to my friends at Can Praxis. They are a charity that helps First Responders, Veterans and their spouses dealing with PTSD. It is my way of paying them back for saving my life in 1994.
IF you would like to match my donation (or a portion) to Can Praxis you can DONATE HERE.
(They are a registered charity and you'll receive a tax receipt.
When I started my efforts some people said
- You’re too old to lose 100lbs
- You’re too old to survive boxing
- You’re going to hurt yourself
- You look like a little kitten playing with string (Speedbag reference)
WATCH ME!
I've learned a lot in the last two years and I have been helping some people online get their life in order physically and mentally. I fought PTSD for 25 years before I talked to someone and it's very dangerous. I've learned a lot of good tips and home workouts that I want to share with as many people as I can. It's my way of paying it forward. I don't want anything for it, I don't accept money but I'm here to help. You can reach out to me on Instagram or Twitter at @davemuryyc.
Lets Go!
LINKS :
Avenue Magazine - Dave Murphy Top 40 Under 40
Attack Survivor supports Canadian Troops
Supporters Thank A Soldier site attracting millions (Canadian Military family magazine)
