More detail on this person: He was a CW-5 at
Ft Knox as a Detachment Commander.
Surviving Spouse: Sandra Cerow Leonard, Son:
Brian Leonard
LEONARD, JOHN PATRICK JR., passed away
peacefully at home Thursday, March 27, 2014. He
was diagnosed with leukemia in 2010 and battled
the increasing effects of the cancer to the end.
He was born on January 1, 1940 in Springfield,
Massachusetts and attended Technical High
School and American International College. He
married Sandra Frances Cerow on July 8, 1961.
He was preceded in death by his parents, John
Patrick Leonard and Cecile Albert Leonard, and his
only sibling, Patricia Ann Bellerive. He is
survived by his wife, Sandra; his son, Brian
Joseph Leonard; and his granddaughter, Megan
Barbara Leonard, all of Louisville.
He was drafted into the U. S. Army in May 1963.
After a tour of duty as an orthopedic technician
at Walter Reed General Hospital, he reenlisted to
attend helicopter flight training at Fort Wolters
in Mineral Wells, TX and Fort Rucker in Alabama in
Class 66-1. In 1966 - 1967, he served in Vietnam
in C Company, 227th Aviation Battalion, 1st
Cavalry Division. His final tour of duty was with
the 2nd Platoon, Bravo Company, 2-228 Aviation
Regiment, Fort Knox, KY. He retired from the
military in 2002 as a CW5 after more than 39 years
as an Army pilot. At that time, he was 61 and the
Army's oldest active aviator. His last employment
was with the Transportation Security
Administration.
His lifelong passion was flying and he was an
original member of the Vietnam Helicopter Pilots
Association in 1984, attending the first reunion
in Phoenix, AZ. A military memorial service and
his interment was held Tuesday, July 1, 2014 at
the Kentucky Veterans Cemetery Central, 2501 N.
Dixie Blvd., Radcliff, KY 40160.
Published in The Courier-Journal from July 2 to
July 4, 2014
This information was last updated 06/27/2014
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