Courtesy of Jacqueline Pena.
At the age of 69, Domingo Pena underwent a double lung transplant to fight against an incurable disease resulting from his service in the Vietnam War 50 years earlier.
Then, on his 70th birthday, Mr. Pena went skydiving.
Mr. Pena, who grew up in Falmouth, took the freefall on May 4 to raise awareness of the dangers of the military herbicide Agent Orange for veterans’ health and the importance of organ donation.
The son of Carlo and Caroline Pena, Mr. Pena was born and raised in West Falmouth. He graduated from Lawrence High School in 1965, and from Dean College in Franklin, Massachusetts. He currently lives in New Jersey but owns a home in Mashpee that he visits frequently.
Mr. Pena spent many years as owner and manager of Domingo’s Olde Restaurant, which was recognized for its excellence in The New York Times and The Boston Globe. He later undertook a career in debt management, ultimately retiring and taking a part-time job with the US Department of Veterans Affairs in Philadelphia.
One day on his way to work, however, Mr. Pena found that he could not complete the 10-minute walk from the train to his office.