Colonel Leonard Marrella

A graduate of Reading High School (1953) where he earned varsity letters in basketball, baseball and football and was a teammate of Lenny Moore. An outstanding baseball player, he played on the Reading High baseball team that only lost one game in three years. He helped lead the Gregg Post Legion team to the state championship (1952). In amateur basketball, he once scored 53 points in a CYO game and 81 points in a City-County League game while playing for the Elite Sweet Shoppe team. He attended the United States Military Academy and graduated from West Point (1957). During his Academy years, he was the captain of the baseball team, was an undefeated Academy boxing champion with a 14-0 record and led his brigade football team to the Academy title. His favorite moment at the Academy came in an exhibition game against the New York Giants when he threw the great Willie Mays out at the plate. He led Fort Monmouth to the Armed Forces baseball title (1958) and coached baseball at Fort Meade (1960). Len served in the military for 22 years, rising to the rank of colonel. He served in Vietnam and with the NATO organization, followed by a two-year stint at the Pentagon. Len attended the Commanding General’s Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, the National Defense University at Fort McNair, received his MBA at Oklahoma University and earned his doctorate at George Washington University (1973).