Avenue of Heroes: John Lepore

Prepared by: Delaney Russell (daughter)

In 1966, the Vietnam War had an urgent need of more chaplains. John immediately volunteered for the Navy Chaplaincy from his parish in Hull, Massachusetts.

His first assignment was to Naval Air Station (NAS) Guantanamo, Cuba. In September 1967, Lepore got his wished-for orders to Vietnam. He had just arrived at Camp Pendleton for orientation when it was reported that Chaplain Vincent Capodanno was killed trying to save a wounded Marine. Lepore was whisked out of Pendleton and sent to South Vietnam with the prediction, “What would take us 30 days to teach you, you’ll learn in a few days with your 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines!” Soon, John was wounded by a grenade when his unit ran into a North Vietnamese Army staging area prior to the Tet Offensive. Lepore’s next assignment was NAS Patuxent River, after which he took a year off from active duty to complete his Doctorate in Counseling at Yale’s Andover Newton Theological School. Returning to the Navy in 1971, John was assigned to Naval Base Yokosuka, Japan where he replaced two chaplains due to the lack of clergy in the military.

Leaving active duty in 1974, Lepore was selected for Reserve Duty with Navy Public Affairs Unit, NAVINFO 101 where for the next 16 years he became a weekend warrior. A highlight of his naval duty was teaching summers at the Naval Academy at Annapolis.

Upon reflection on his 24-year Naval career, he thought how fortunate he was to experience a ride in an A-6 Intruder Jet over the Outer Banks of Carolina, to circuit ride to isolated naval detachments in Eleuthera, San Salvador and Grand Turk Islands, to climb Mt. Fuji three times, and jump into a foxhole and meet the real Dennis the Menace. He claimed he had the great privilege of working with
the finest men and women he could possibly meet, especially the young Marines of 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines that did their dangerous duties despite waning support of their country.

Commander Lepore retired from the Navy in 1990, and moved to Coronado in 1994, serving the San Diego area as a special needs teacher and counselor.

The Avenue of Heroes military service recognition program is sponsored by the City of Coronado. Introduced in 2014, the program has honored 246 hometown heroes to date. On November 4, 2023, another 16 will be 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.