Ronald D. Castille Chief Justice Emeritus
In January 2008, Justice Ronald D. Castille was inducted as the 55th Chief Justice of
the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court was founded by
William Penn in 1684 and is the oldest sitting Supreme Court in the United States. The
Chief Justice was first elected as a Justice to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in 1994
for a ten year term and was retained in 2003 and again in 2013. In 2014, Chief Justice
Castille reached the mandatory retirement age for judges in Pennsylvania and retired on
December 31, 2014, after serving on the Court for 21 years.
2015 Navy League
Annual Dinner
and Presentation of
The Commodore Barry Award
To
Ronald D. Castille
Chief Justice Emeritus
You’re
Invited...
Wednesday, September 23, 2015
The Merion Cricket Club
325 Montgomery Avenue
Haverford, PA 19041-1899
General Reception 6:00 to 7:00 pm
Dinner 7:00 pm
Sponsorship Information Enclosed
Corporate Contributions Permitted and welcome
Chief Justice Castille’s judicial service on the Court and to the citizens of Pennsylvania
has been recognized by many professional, civic, and veterans’ organizations, both locally
and nationally. He received the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Judge of the Year Award in
2011. He received the Philadelphia Bar Association’s William J. Brennan Distinguished
Jurist Award in 2013 along with the Association’s Chancellor’s Gold Medal Award in
2014. He was also awarded the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Gold Medal for Judicial
Leadership in 2014 along with the Judge Robert Dauer Award for Judicial Leadership
and Excellence. Chief Justice Castille received Duquesne Law School’s Carol Los Mansmann Award for Distinguished Public Service in 2014.
During his career on the bench, Chief Justice Castille had strived continually to see that
the critical need for indigent legal service is available in Pennsylvania for those most in
need of an attorney’s services but who cannot afford legal representation. In recognition
of those efforts, the Chief Justice was awarded the Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network’s
(PLAN) Excellence Award in 2011 and again in 2013. Most recently, the Pennsylvania
Bar Association awarded the Chief Justice the Association’s inaugural Judge’s Award in
support of Legal Aid and named the annual award “The Chief Justice Ronald D. Castille
Judge’s Award” (2014). Chief Justice Castille was elected to the Board of the Conference
of Chief Justices, the national organization comprised of every state’s Chief Justice.
Chief Justice Castille graduated from the University of Virginia Law School in 1971
and began his legal career in the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office where he served
for 20 years and was one of its top prosecutors. He was elected District Attorney in
1985 on the Republican ticket and was reelected in 1989. While leading one of the
top prosecutorial agencies in the nation, in 1991 his fellow prosecutors on the national
level presented him with the National District Attorneys’ Association President’s Award
for Outstanding Service as Vice-President and Legislative Chair of the National District
Attorneys’ Association.
Chief Justice Castille has long held an abiding interest in aiding his fellow veterans. He
was co-founder of the Philadelphia Vietnam Veterans Memorial, built and now standing
at Penn’s Landing. The memorial commemorates the 646 Philadelphians who gave
their lives in service to this Nation during the military conflict in Vietnam. The National DAV named him as the Disabled Veteran of the Year in 1988, and the Pennsylvania
DAV named him the Disabled Veteran of the Year in 1988 as well. On the national
level, the Institute for the Study of American Wars presented him with the Spirit of
America Award (1988) and the Military Order of World Wars presented him with the
Patrick Henry Award for Patriotic Achievement (2000).
This resulted in the loss of his right leg from the wounds. For his actions on
March 16, 1967, Castille was awarded the Bronze Star with Combat “V” device
and two Purple Heart Medals. He was Honorably Discharged from the Marine
Corps in June 1968.
In 1997 the Marine Corps Law Enforcement Foundation awarded him the Profiles in
Courage Award, and he received the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation Award in
2002. Chief Justice Castille always wears a small, gold Marine Corps Emblem on the
lapel of his suit in respect for his deceased fellow Marines and for the Marine Corps.
Ron Castille did not give up from his severe injuries. After his recovery he was
admitted to the Law School at Virginia, thanks to the GI Bill, which Chief
Justice Castille considers one of the greatest pieces of legislation enacted by the
U.S. Congress. He became an avid handicap skier while in the Philadelphia Naval
Hospital as well as a ski instructor to the disabled, and a fair golfer to this day.
Ron Castille was born in Miami, Florida in 1944. His father, Hank Castille, was a B-17
bomber pilot in WWII who served in the legendary 8th Air Force in England. In his
19 bomb missions, his B-17 was shot up but never shot down, always returning safely
to his English airfield. Hank Castille served again in the Korean Conflict as a troop
carrier pilot in C-119 Boxcars and went on to a 28-year career in the U.S. Air Force.
Ron Castille grew up as a “service brat.”
Following graduation from high school in Fukuoka, Japan, Ron Castille attended Auburn University on a U.S. Navy ROTC scholarship and a General H. H. “Hap” Arnold
stipend. Upon graduation from Auburn in 1966, he was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the U.S. Marine Corps. Following training at the Basic School in Quantico,
VA, Lt. Castille was rated 03-02, a Rifle Platoon Commander, and was assigned to Fox
Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Maring Regiment, 1st Marine Division, operating out of
Chu Lai, South Vietnam.
On March 16, 1967, during Operation DeSoto in the Duc Pho area of Quang Ngnai Province, Castille’s Company was ambushed by a cadre of North Vietnamese
Army Forces. As Marines lay wounded and dying in that nameless rice paddy, Castille
organized a rescue mission to retrieve Marine casualties in the heat of the ongoing
firefight. He was severely wounded during the mission and he had to be rescued
himself by his Right Guide, Corporal Angel Mendez, who pulled him to safety. Despite
his own wound, Lt. Castille directed the helicopter medivac of the other wounded
Marines and was the last to be medivaced from the battle area.
Lt. Castille received a second gunshot wound in the CH-34 as the enemy attempted to down the medivac helicopter. As a result of his wounds, Lt. Castille spent
15 months of recovery in the U.S. Naval Hospital System (including one month
in the U.S. Air Force Hospital at Clark Air Force Base in the Philippine Islands).
Lt. Castille’s Right Guide, Corporal Angel Mendez, USMC, died from wounds
suffered while rescuing him that day. He was posthumously awarded the Navy
Cross. His body lies in rest in the Staten Island, NY orphanage where he grew up.
And the rest, as they say, is History.
Commodore John Barry
and the Distinguished Citizen Award
The founder of the United States Navy, Commodore John Barry (1745-1803)
was appointed the Navy’s first flag officer and assigned “Commission No.1” by
President George Washington in 1794.
A native of County Wexford, Ireland, Barry was an American merchant marine
captain who volunteered his services to the Continental Navy during the
Revolutionary War. Recognizing Barry’s heroism and meritorious service, the
First Congress, acting under the new Constitution, authorized the raising of
the US Navy with Barry as its head. Commodore Barry died, and is buried, in
Philadelphia. In 2005, Barry’s personal papers and artifacts were donated by his
estate to the Independence Seaport Museum in Philadelphia for permanent display.
The Commodore Barry Award is given to a non-active duty person(s) whose
character, distinguished military or civilian service and stature draw wholesome
comparison to the qualities for which the Philadelphia Council of the Navy
League strives.
Honorees have provided a lifetime of service to the United States and our
armed forces and have thereby made significant and distinguished contributions
to our nation.
Sponsor Levels
Commodore Barry $10,000
President’s Circle
$5,000
•Recognition as presenting sponsor
•Premiere program, banner and website placement
•Ten guests at a special reserved table
•Prominent program and website placement
•Five guests at a special reserved table
Friends of the Sea Services
$1,000
•Ten seats for active military in uniform
•Prominent program placement
Individual
$125
•One admission to general reception
•One dinner seat
Our Mission
Our Council supports Sailors, Marines, Merchant Marines and
their families; NROTC; Junior NROTC; Junior MCROTC;
Sea Cadets; Young Marines; Wounded Warriors and veterans.
Founded under the leadership of President Theodore Roosevelt
in 1902, The Navy League is the citizen arm of the sea services.
The 2015 Navy League Annual Dinner
Name:___________________________________________________________________
Company/Organization Name:________________________________________________
Address:________________________________________________________________
City:__________________________________ State:_________ Zip:_________________
Daytime Phone:______________________E-mail:_______________________________
Pl ease Choose On e:
I cannot attend.
Please use my donation
of $__________ to host
members of the active
military and wounded
service members.
P l ease RSVP By 9-20-15
Yes, I will attend. Enclosed please find $__________
for sponsorship at the following level:

Commodore Barry ($10,000) 
President’s Circle ($5,000)

Friends of the Sea Services ($1,000) 
Individual ($125)
Please list names of guests on the back of this card.
Professional Business Attire • Jacket & Tie Required
Military Personnel Dress Uniform
Please make checks payable and mail to: “NLUS-Philadelphia”
Navy League Dinner, 5344 Walden Way, Doylestown, PA 18902
Payments may be made on PayPal.
Visit www.navyleaguephilly.org for information.
For additional information on the Dinner, contact Stu Abramson:
[email protected] or phone (215) 345-7596
Guest Names
Guest names may also be sent to [email protected]
Corporate contributions are permitted.
The Navy League – Philadelphia Chapter is a registered 501(c)(3) organization.
Official registration and financial information is files with the
Pennsylvania Bureau of Charitable Organizations and may be obtained by calling 800-732-0999.
A registration with the Pennsylvania Bureau of Charitable Organizations does not imply endorsement.