TROY — When John Covey, Jr., brought 13-year-old Stephen L. Murphy home to live with his family on Webster Street in Jaffrey all those years ago, it was only supposed to be for two weeks.

It wouldn’t be until Murphy was ready to join the Marines, some 17 years later, that he would finally leave the Covey home.

On Sunday, a week after Marine Staff Sgt. Stephen L. Murphy, who also lived in Troy, died in Iraq, his family and friends came together to remember a man slight in stature but towering in strength.

Evelyn Covey, now of Antrim, recounted fondly the day he arrived at her home. And she spoke of the bond that grew, eventually forming into a relationship so deep that he considered her a second mother and even had her listed as a next-of-kin.

So, it was as a mother that Covey took the news that Murphy had died of yet to be determined injuries.

The morning following Murphy’s death, Covey received the devastating news.

“The major called me,” said Covey, who was reading a passage from the Bible when he called. “The amazing thing is I was reading Hebrews — about God being a hope, anchor and refuge when I got the call.”

Upon first hearing the news, Evelyn said, “My thoughts were mercy. It was just like it can’t be true. For us, it seems like we only had him a short while. It hurts.”

According to Evelyn, the day her son brought Murphy home, he arrived with purple and green hair. “His hair was his pride and joy,” said Lynn Quade, Evelyn’s daughter. “He was such a heavy metal dude.”

Evelyn said Murphy’s mother Carol Murphy, of Troy, recognized the need for her son to have stability in a home and remained grateful throughout his time living with the Covey family.

“She was thrilled,” said Evelyn. “She understood it was necessary.”

To Evelyn’s husband, John, Murphy’s hair was never too big of a deal, as he quickly made the decision to love the young boy from the inside out. “My husband said, ‘Don’t look at the hair, look at the person. Right now, he needs his hair,’” said Evelyn, who never thought much about it again.

Around the same time that Murphy came to live with the Coveys, Evelyn began having trouble using her two hands because a piece of machinery fell on them at work. “He became my hands for two years. He cleaned and cooked and cared for us when I couldn’t use my hands” said Evelyn. “We only shared our home. He gave us more than we gave him.”

Quade agrees with her mother. “We thought we were helping him, but he was helping us,” she said, fondly remembering how Murphy took the time to teach her son, Nick LaRue, how to ski and how to play the guitar.

“That’s what the Lord does,” said Evelyn. “He calls these special people into your life and they give you so much more.”

Evelyn recounts with great joy how it was her husband, John, who played a pivotal role in convincing Murphy, a high school drop out at the time, to join the Marines. “John always said Steve would serve his country,” said Evelyn. “John would call him ‘my little Marine.’ ”

However, before he could join the Marines, Murphy had several obstacles to overcome, including getting a high school diploma.

“He needed a high school diploma so he went to Conant by day, and ConVal by night,” said Quade, but when Murphy went to the recruiters, he was told he still couldn’t join the Marines because he didn’t weigh enough. “He failed the weight requirement,” said Quade.

But that didn’t deter Murphy from giving up. “He went twice a day to the gym,” she said, until he weighed enough to enlist in the Marines. “He was busting his tail. He felt good about that.”

Dan Covey, another one of Evelyn’s children, said Murphy impacted his life the same way his father, John did. “Steve gave me a hope and a dream,” said Dan Covey. “The hardest thing is when my father passed on because part of my father lived in Stephen,” said Dan Covey, who has happy memories of watching Western movies on TV along with his dad and Murphy.

When John, Sr., passed away in 1997, the family said Murphy flew home from a military assignment in Taiwan just to attend the service. “Steve looked me in the eyes and said I’m his brother and that we’re always going to be his family,” said Dan.

Evelyn said the last time she and her family saw Murphy was in 2007. “He had his skis and guitars with him. He said I don’t need these anymore. I’m starting a new life,” said Evelyn. “He didn’t say what that meant. He just wished us well and Godspeed, then he left. Those were the last words he told us.”

Quade said it was always hard for her to picture Murphy as a Marine because he was such a tender, gentle young man, but he had an incredible inner strength.

“Steve was a total overcomer,” said Quade, as he beat the odds that were stacked against him throughout his young life. “A lot of kids use that kind of stuff as an excuse not to succeed, but not him,” said Quade. “It only made him stronger.”