Avenue of Heroes: Eleanor J. Smith

Prepared by: John D. Malone (spouse)

CAPT Smith enlisted in the U.S. Navy as a Seaman Recruit in 1977. Graduating with distinction from Hospital Corpsman and Pharmacy Technician schools, she advanced to Petty Officer Second Class. Completing associate degrees in both biology and chemistry, she graduated with a Doctor of Pharmacy from first ranked University of California San Francisco in 1987. An active-duty commission followed, and a hospital pharmacy residency completed at National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland in 1991 during Desert Shield/Storm. She then advanced to Director of the Pharmacy Residency Program.

From 1994 to 1996, as Head of the Pharmacy Department for the U.S. Naval Academy, Lieutenant — then Lieutenant Commander — Smith, was responsible for the pharmaceutical care of over 4,000 Midshipman. In 1997, she became a Board-Certified Pharmacotherapy Specialist, one of only 2,500 pharmacists nationwide. Following a 1998 move with her Navy Medical Corps husband, Dr. Smith continued her clinical expertise in the Naval Medical Center San Diego Anticoagulation Clinic.

In 2001, Lieutenant Commander Smith was selected as Director for Administration, Naval Reserve, Naval Medical Center San Diego Detachment A, responsible for 450 medical reservists during Operation Iraqi Freedom. In 2005, then Commander Smith was selected as Director of Administration, Operational Health Support Unit, at Naval Medical Center San Diego Headquarters, responsible for 800 service members. In 2006, Commander Smith was selected to Captain and served as Executive Officer of Expeditionary Medical Facility, Great Lakes, Illinois, in support of Landstuhl, Germany, and Commanding Officer, and first female Medical Service Corps officer, for the Operational Health Support Unit, Naval Medical Center San Diego, providing healthcare in California, Arizona, Hawaii, and Guam from 2009 to 2011. From 2010 to 2012, she volunteered as senior medical advisor and sole clinical pharmacist for four joint service humanitarian missions in Haiti, Hawaii, and Indonesia via USNS Mercy (T-AH-19).

Post-Command tours included the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Norfolk, Virginia, during Operation Enduring Freedom. CAPT Smith retired in 2016, culminating a 31-year career of honorable military and professional service.

CAPT Smith’s awards include the Legion of Merit, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal (3), and is twice recipient of the Lamar R. Smith Pharmacy Award – active duty and reserves — the highest Navy honor to a pharmacist who made the greatest contributions to Navy Medicine.

The Avenue of Heroes military service recognition program is sponsored by the City of Coronado. Introduced in 2014, the program has honored 261 hometown heroes to date. On May 18, 2024, another 16 were honored. City staff and volunteers from the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2422, the Coronado Historical Association and Third and Fourth Streets Neighborhood Association oversee its operation.

In 2011, the program was inspired spontaneously with the movement of two Navy SEALs to their final resting place. News spread quickly and the local Rotary Club passed out American flags. People lined Fourth Street to honor the fallen service members. As the procession approached the Coronado Bridge, a lone Navy SEAL stood at attention, saluting as he waited for the passage of his comrades. That moment made clear that Third and Fourth streets were already an Avenue of Heroes.

That spontaneous beginning launched the program in May 2015 with 18 banners. The Avenue of Heroes is a reminder that Coronado has a rich history and legacy of service to the country.