Albert Otto Leapley

Albert was born June 19, 1924 in Chicago, Illinois. His mother, Augusta, came from Germany at the age of 8, and his father, William, was born in Illinois.

After high school, Albert enlisted in the Navy and served 4 years, including being among the first ships landing at Normandy on D-Day, and at the Italian front. He also served in the Pacific. Albert returned to Normandy for the 50th anniversary, and was honored by the mayor. On the 75th anniversary he was interviewed by the OC Register, and on ABC, channel 7 tv.

After the war, Albert graduated from Illinois Institute of Technology with a degree in mechanical engineering. He married Gloria Mittelmeyer, and they had one child, Diana. Albert worked for Refrigerating Specialties in Chicago as the VP/Sales manager, then moved to Atlanta and opened his own refrigeration consulting business. He resided in Atlanta for about 46 years before moving to Orange County in 2013 to be near his daughter and son-in-law, Diana and Scott DeWees, and his grandsons, Dan and Tim DeWees. He enjoyed visiting with the boys, and was always interested in what they were doing in school, work and life.

Albert was known for his quick wit, and fun-loving spirit. He and Diana took many trips together around the world, and always had fun. His memory was incredible, right to the end. Diana would ask if it was Oslo or Helsinki where they met the Apollo 11 astronauts, and Albert could cite the date and location. When Diana and Al were traveling in Eastern Europe, Al suggested they switch passports when the Russian guard came on their tour bus. The guard was very stern, looked back and forth, and finally cracked up. Al was always a jokester, and everyone had fun with him.

Albert had COPD, and finally succumbed on January 17, 2019. He had a wonderful military ceremony with honor guard and taps, followed by a burial, at Miramar National Cemetary in San Diego on January 31, 2019.