Longtime member Mike Trephan died unexpectedly June 7 in Pennsylvania of natural causes. Without a doubt, the press club will miss him, and we send our heartfelt condolences to his wife Deb and other family members. You can read a brief obituary here.
Upon hearing of Mike’s death, Bob Orr, Vice President of Administration for the press club writes, “Mike was a long-time member of the Naples Press Club and was the founder of the Honor the Free Press award. For more than a decade he partnered with the Marine Corps League (MCL) of Naples and our club to present an annual program that promoted the first amendment and honored journalists. Mike was a proud U.S. Marine, a highly successful businessman, and a tireless champion for free speech. For many years, Mike and his wife spent their winters in Naples. And when they were not in Naples or at home in Harrisburg they travelled the globe. In fact, he and Deb were looking forward to a cruise that leaves this Sunday.”
A few years ago, Bob described Mike in an introduction to an article Mike wrote as “one of our most colorful and inspiring members.” Click here to read the entire article published in SCOOP, titled “My Time in the Marines.”
On its website, the Marine Corps League of Naples describes its awards program as follows: “The Marine Corps League of Naples, FL, annually honors a journalist as a way to emphasize the importance of a free press in America, something U.S. Marines have fought to preserve for more than 200 years. The Honor the Free Press luncheon was the idea of Michael Trephan, a member and the Detachment’s former Public Information/Publicity Officer. Mike, with the full support of the Detachment Marines, organized and fashioned the luncheon event into a unique Naples tradition, highlighting nationally prominent speakers honoring the vital importance of a free and unfettered press, as well as the warriors who fought and often died to defend our Republic’s freedoms. In 2007, the Naples Press Club agreed to partner with the MCL as a symbol of unity.”
You can read more by clicking here, where you will find a list of honorees from 2005 through 2015. Our own Bob Orr, longtime Justice and Homeland Security Correspondent for CBS News, was the honoree in 2015, the ten-year anniversary of the awards program. The final year of the program was 2018, during which Army General Barry McCaffrey, television commentator, was honored.
Press club president Julie Pedretti writes, “The Honor the Free Press events were so inspiring. We will keep Mike’s family in our thoughts and prayers. RIP, Mike Trephan.”
Carole J. Greene, founding member and past president, notes, “…I respected and honored him for his diligent service on so many levels. The world will miss him.”
Past president Soni Dimond says Mike is the person who encouraged her to move from Pennsylvania to Naples. Soni writes, “Mike also brought me into the Naples Press Club, and I have such great memories of those years! Mike changed my life. He was like a well-connected uncle watching over me. I’m heartbroken. I will miss him dearly.”
And for me, Mike and I shared a very special connection — the U.S. Marine Corps. My mother and father both served in the Marine Corps during World War II. In fact, at the Honor the Free Press award luncheons, I would show Mike my parents’ wedding photo from September 1945, in which they are proudly wearing their Marine uniforms. Mike delighted in taking me around the room to meet his fellow Marines so I could show the photo to them, too. That camaraderie still warms my heart.
Mike, you made such a positive difference during your 86 years on this earth, especially in the world of journalism and the news media. It was such an honor to know you and to witness your passion for ensuring that the U.S. continues to have a free and unfettered press.
Semper Fi, my friend.
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