Leopold Saverio Vaccaro was a noted Italian-born American surgeon and scientist[citation needed] who was decorated for assisting with the reconstruction of Italy in the aftermath of World War I.
In 1921 he was made Chevalier of the Crown of Italy for his efforts raising one quarter million dollars for rehabilitation of that country after World War I.
Further decorations earned by Vaccaro include the title Commander of the Crown of Italy and an honorary medical degree from the University of Rome La Sapienza.
Vaccaro has been described as a "community spokesman" by Historian Richard A. Varbero in Allen Freeman Davis and Mark H. Haller's book The Peoples of Philadelphia: A History of Ethnic Groups and Lower-class Life: 1790-1940.
In that article, Vaccaro stated "The ideals preached by the Americanization teacher do not coincide with the attitude of the gang boss, the native union man, the fellow workingman, who, although compelled economically to work with the alien, would not voluntarily have him as a neighbor.