Tuesday, July 2, 2019 | 1:42 p.m.
A former editor of the old Nellis Bullseye military base newspaper died Monday in Illinois.
Rob Murphy, 54, had battled liver disease, his widow, Lora Murphy, said.
The Murphys spent several years in Southern Nevada in the 1980s when Rob Murphy was stationed at Nellis Air Force Base. He served for a time as editor of the base’s weekly newspaper.
“That was his baby,” Lora Murphy said of the paper. “He would work every week until it was just right. Whatever Rob was doing, he would never do anything halfway. He was very particular.”
Tim Sweeney, who worked on the paper with Murphy, remembered him as a good airman and a guy with a big heart.
Sweeney would often join “Murph,” as he was known around the base, on weekly trips to the Las Vegas Sun offices, where the Bullseye was produced.
“We kept in touch via Facebook a little over the years,” Sweeney said. “I remember that he would always be trying to make the paper better. We won some awards, and I know he was proud of that.”
Lora Murphy remembered her family’s time in Southern Nevada fondly.
“Nellis offered us a lot of opportunities. It was like a family there,” she said. “Our youngest daughter was born there and we had some great times. Rob was a kind, loyal and caring person.”
Rob Murphy left the service in 1987, his wife said. After 51 years of continuous publication, the Bullseye folded in 2007. Today, the base’s newspaper is called the Desert Lightning News.
Besides his wife, Murphy is survived by two daughters, Catie Campbell and Natalie Newcomb, and five grandchildren. An adopted daughter, Candice, died in 2008.
A funeral Mass is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Saturday at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Savanna, Illinois.
