Daily Press Writer
MONTROSE — Kirk Le Clere has come full circle.
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“We are ready to put some roots down,” Le Clere said with a chuckle. “If I never see the ocean again it will be too soon.” Le Clere retired earlier this month following a 30-plus year career with the Coast Guard. Technically he is on what is called terminal leave and his retirement is official Dec. 1.
The Le Clere family moved to Montrose in 1964 when the late George Le Clere relocated his family for a job with the Bureau of Reclamation. His wife Lucille still lives here as does her daughter Leslie, who is married to Jack McKenna.
“There was a lot of discussion about where we would end up,” Kirk said. “We looked everywhere, Nevada, southern Utah. We wanted to go some place affordable, fair weathered and quite simply a good place to retire in the western United States.”
Sitting around the family dining room table, Le Clere, Jody and Lucille, reflected on the trials of life and joys of retirement. Garlic permeated the air as Lucille had ribs and baked beans roasting in the oven. Sylvester, the 20-pound cat, lounged on the patio table just outside the sliding glass door. He too seemed pleased the family moved back to Montrose.
Le Clere graduated from Montrose High School in 1974. He was very active in athletics — winning the Colorado 3A state wrestling title in the 138-pound division his senior year. He also was a life guard and water safety instructor. He earned his associates degree from Mesa State College in 1976 and then joined the Coast Guard.
“I wanted to be a mechanic and I had the desire to fly,” he said.
The Coast Guard was established in 1915 and in 2003 was placed under the Department of Homeland Security. It is charged with maritime law, mariner assistance, search and rescue, among other duties. The Coast Guard is the United States’ oldest continuous seagoing service and approximately 40,000 men and women currently serve in active duty.
Le Clere completed basic training or in lay terms “boot camp” in Alameda, Calif. At the time, he was only the third person in the history of the Coast Guard to receive perfect scores on all the fitness aptitude tests. Based on these results, he was asked to teach and train new recruits, an offer he turned down for aviation service.
Upon completion of Aviation Maintenance Technician school, he was stationed in Houston. Next he was stationed in Air Station Arcata, now called Air Station Humboldt Bay in northern California. It was here he met his future wife Jody. The couple now have three grown children.
During this tour, he represented the United States Armed Forces as a power lifter for the Navy in national competition. He set three California state records and was one of the top four lifters in the world in 1983 for the 198-pound weight class.
“In the dead lift competition I lifted 702 pounds; in the squats I did 683 pounds and on the bench press, 424 pounds,” he said. His physical strength was most recently tapped by Lucille to fell a tree in her back yard. She said she is not surprised the couple returned to Montrose.
“It’s wonderful to have them back,” she said. “Who can resist Montrose? I figured he would move back one day. ... He has been helping me with honey-do chores I have needed for the past 10 years.”
Despite, his life-long athletic success, Le Clere feels he has made far more important contributions.
“Physical fitness has always been a big part of my life,” he said. “But that is not my cornerstone. I think my leadership development, education and communication took me much further.”
Le Clere also served Polar Operations which allowed him to see 22 countries in nearly four years. He had several deployments to the Arctic and Antarctica. He was also stationed in Oregon and Alaska. During his career he flew every mile of the United States coastline from Nova Scotia to the furthest reaches of Alaska in a low-flying helicopter.
He logged nearly 3,000 hours on helicopter missions. His duties included in-flight maintenance and testing of equipment along with SAR operations. His last formal flight in 1993 ended in a crash landing and was one of two tours which almost ended with the loss of aircraft and crew — but luckily, both missions ended safely.
His military career can be divided into three main portions, he said. The first 12 years he was an aircraft mechanic and Search and Rescue (SAR) responder. The next eight years were spent in maintenance management — he was gone from his family a lot during this period, including a six-month deployment to the arctic. The last 10 years he spent in command position — “that’s where I flew a desk,” he joked about his role of managing the Coast Guard workforce.
During his tenure, he helped to make the Chiefs Initiation — a rite of passage that has traditionally been a torturous initiation — into a celebration to be shared with loved ones. He also created the Eagles and Anchors program, a leadership forum to help fuse Coast Guard management.
Retirement will not bring Le Clere much rest. He and Jody have found a temporary rental home, but are in the market for real estate. While stationed in California, Le Clere honed his horticulture skills. The family had nearly an acre parcel on which he grew “anything from a bulb.” Jody said his organic lilies were to die for.
“He would call me and say that a co-worker had forgotten an anniversary or something and they would come by the house and we would make them a bouquet that the florist would charge $100,” Jody says. “He had carnations, roses, just about everything.” Prior to their move, the couple spent a week digging up nearly 2,000 flower bulbs to bring with them.
“I would like to find a place with 30 or 40 acres,” he said. “I want to really get into my organic flowering and gardening.”
In addition to the flora in his life, Le Clere also has a passion for fauna. He and Jody also have a mini-herd of Pomeranian pooches which at first he was not to sure about but has come to love. When he goes outside to greet them, the dogs barely clear his ankles and Sylvester, the sun-bathing cat towers over them.
“After I earned Master Chief I really didn’t care what people thought,” he quips. “It was kind of fun to walk around base with a little dog.”
Ultimately he would like to give back to the community that was so supportive of his endeavors.
“I would love to start a camp for underprivileged children,” Le Clere said. “It would have a long bunkhouse and they could play with animals. There would be bonfires at night. Maybe that is what I can do with my next 30 years.”
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