I had the priviledge of meeting him later that year... which for a 16 year old kid (who closely followed the space program) was a dream come true.
I had just left my high school (Admiral Farragut Academy) for the summer, and went to France where my parents lived. I got home, still in my uniform, and my dad said "Alan Shepard is in town getting an honary wine society award...let's go".
Once in the small town square, packed with people, someone approached me and asked me to stay put... he said the Admiral wanted to talk to me. Shepard noticed the uniform as he attended the same school years earlier. We chatted a few minutes... it was a real high for me.
I also read Gordon Cooper's autobiography, "Leap of Faith." I was surprised to learn that he was a fairly religious guy, very Christian. He may have been a hard partier and sinner (aren't we all?) in his younger days, but the book revealed that at least in his later days, he took his religion pretty seriously.
He also made no bones about UFOs he saw while flying jets and working at U.S. Air Force bases, and that the military and government were ruthless in making sure that personnel who saw the things kept quiet and that any film footage always disappeared.