In memoriam

South Texas lost a community leader last week.

Rocco Montesano, former executive director of USS Lexington Museum and NAS Corpus Christi commanding officer, passed away.

When Rocco Montesano came to South Texas the summer of 1994 to serve as the NAS Corpus Christi commanding officer, he didn’t expect the warm welcome he received from the local community.

So, when he retired here from the U.S. Navy in 1998, he and his family decided to make Corpus Christi their home.

The native of Hackensack, N.J., graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1971 and served in the Navy until 1998

As a Navy jet aviator, Montesano held a variety of positions while serving in several carrier-based aircraft squadrons, including commanding officer. He has logged more than 5,500 flight hours and 900 carrier landings. He served as a staff member of Naval Central Command in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, during Desert Shield/Desert Storm and subsequently headed the test and evaluation of Air Programs in the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations in Washington, D.C.

He was the commanding officer of Naval Air Station Corpus Christi from 1994 to 1996, and served as Manpower Director for the Chief of Naval Air Training until retiring in 1998.

His personal awards and decorations include two Legion of Merits, two Meritorious Service Medals, the Navy Commendation Medal and five sea service ribbons.

After his 30-year Navy career, Montesano accepted the position of executive director of USS Lexington, from which he recently retired.