Harry Leonard Capadano, Jr.

Harry Leonard Capadano, Jr. passed peacefully from this life on July 6, 2024, at the age of 93 from natural causes related to chronic illness. Harry was born in September 1930 to Harry L. Capadano, Sr., and Estelle Capadano (Burgio) in Rochester, NY, and was raised there with his younger sister, Marjorie.

“Junior,” as he was called by friends, survived polio as a child to excel in academics, music, and athletics throughout his youth. While in grade school, he studied woodwinds and piano at the Eastman School of Music. He graduated from Thomas Aquinas High School in Rochester, NY and attended Assumption College in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, and graduated from the University of Buffalo with advanced degrees in Biochemistry.

Harry wed Bernadette Louise (“Betty”) Monachino on June 13, 1951, in Elba, New York. He served in the United States Air Force from 1951 to 1955, honorably discharged as a Staff Sergeant after serving as an Operating Room Medic and Surgeon’s Assistant. His unit developed cutting-edge plastic surgery and skin grafting techniques for the benefit of countless wounded Korean War servicemen and servicewomen.

He returned to Rochester where he worked as a fighter pilot gun camera engineer for Bell & Howell until 1957, when the lure of warmer weather and NASA’s space program beckoned a move to the Florida Space Coast. He worked for NASA throughout the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs as a motion picture photo chemist, celebrating and lamenting every success and failure along the way. Harry enjoyed sharing that his Patrick Air Force Base Tech Lab office was in the “I Dream of Jeannie” building and that he helped develop all NASA rocket launch motion picture films during the Space Race, including archival footage shown in movies like “The Right Stuff” and “Apollo 13.” After leaving NASA, he continued to apply his expertise and energy to a wide array of jobs, including cosmetic chemistry, high-speed printer manufacturing, industrial environmental remediation, and public facility asbestos abatement.

As Harry and Betty worked tirelessly to support their seven children, Harry pursued a variety of interests outside of work and home. He and Betty helped found Ascension Catholic Church and School, where she was a Physical Education teacher, and he was a volunteer basketball coach. They were members of the church choir, which Harry directed for 12 years. Harry was a founding member of the Brevard County Parochial Athletic League. A self-taught low-handicap golfer, he coached golf at Melbourne Central Catholic High School in 1969. A self-taught tennis player, he coached the Eau Gallie High School Girls’ Tennis team and worked at the Jimmy Moore Tennis Complex for years. A low-handicap bowler in his 20s and 30s, he supervised youth bowling leagues at Brunswick Harbour Lanes later in life well into his 80s. He was a highly sought-after volunteer Brevard County Engineering and Science Fairs judge for decades. He was a passionate life-long fan of Notre Dame football and took an avid interest in his family dogs. His extended family and Catholic faith were the cornerstones of his life. At his grandfather’s request, Father Matthew Capadano, pastor of St. Mary’s Catholic Church, in Wayne, Nebraska, is celebrating his grandfather’s funeral Mass.

Harry was preceded in death by his parents; his loving wife of 44 years, Betty; sister Marjorie (“Gigi”) Lombardini, his infant son Thomas Lee, his daughter Mary Elizabeth Coty, and his granddaughter Stephanie Coneen (Henderson). He is survived by six of his eight children: sons Harry Leonard III and Richard Alan (Dana); and daughters Liz Henderson, Lynne Szott (Rick), Teresa Gangloff, and Tina, his primary caretaker for the last years of his life; eleven grandchildren (Elizabeth, Matthew, and Katherine; Rachel and Megan; Christina, Michael and Matthew; Maximillian; and Jonathan and Jacob); thirteen great-grandchildren, and numerous nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in Harry's name to be made to any of the following: St. Francis Reflections LifeStage Care - Melbourne, FL, Ascension Catholic Church - Melbourne, FL or St. Mary's Catholic Church - Wayne, NE.