Dr. Kip Owen has passed that tipping point. He has finally lapped up enough years in which he has been out of the military as the years he served in the military. Back in 1971, when he was sworn in to the US Navy while at the United State Naval Academy, he walked into an extraordinary place reserved only for those courageous enough to serve and protect the citizens of the United States. It was a stride destined for a very long and enormously successful life of service to others.
Dr. Kip Owen’s trajectory through his military career took him to heights that few Americans will ever have the privilege of experiencing. After a model upbringing by his Baptist preacher father and schoolteacher mother, he graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1975. With a few more years of training under his wings, he was deployed in the Western Pacific on the USS Enterprise in 1978. At that time, he was an F-14 pilot, the Cold War was at its peak and his assignment was to intercept aircraft and defend the carrier. In retrospect, he sees it clearly as a “cat and mouse game,” but it is never a game while dealing with an unpredictable adversary. Always ready to protect the United States, Owen and his compatriots in the Navy flew jets with live missiles and guns because they never knew with each flight whether the pilots of the U.S.S.R. were going to fire on them.
Because of his exceptional aviation skills, the Navy selected Owen as an operational test pilot and missile project officer for the F/A-18 Hornet at the VX-4 squadron. He, along with his fellow pilots took the F/A-18 into operational scenarios before releasing the fighter aircraft to the naval fleet and marine corps. The F/A-18 test team pilots were the first to take the Hornet onto an aircraft carrier after engineering clearance flights. Kip Owen had the honor of being only the 13th naval aviator to land the F/A-18 Hornet aboard the USS Constellation. Later in the 1990s, the VX-4 and VX-5 squadrons merged and became known as the VX-9 Vampires.
“Bonding, brotherhood of service to others lasts forever.” – Dr. Kip Owen
After completing his work at VX-4 in 1983, Dr Owen moved to Texas A&M. There he worked as a student worker at the veterinary school while preparing to enter graduate school. When faced with the decision to go to vet school or medical school, he became convinced that he was called to continue his life of service to others. He graduated from Texas A&M’s College of Medicine in 1988 and went on to study orthopedic surgery at the University of Arkansas Medical Sciences and then complete a sports medicine fellowship with the team physician’s at the University of Oregon. He ultimately moved to the Rio Grande Valley of Texas in 2001 and retired from the military in 2002(fleet reserve in 2013).
The transition from his military career to civilian life was a long process. A 10 year journey began in 1983 when he left active duty which lasted until 1993 when he began to practice orthopedic surgery. With 27 years in, most of his life had been military affiliated, so it took some adjustment to full time civilian life.
It was in his work as a physician that Owen became acquainted with the Knie
stedt Foundation President, James Kniestedt. He attended a shooting competition at the Gravick Ranch for the benefit of the Diabetes Foundation. He sees the Kniestedt Foundation as “a great resource for enjoying nature and wildlife, camaraderie, and insightful instruction.” He still visits the ranch for training and hunting because he enjoys the mix of civilians, veterans and professionals whom he meets there. He appreciates the opportunity to reconnect with fellow veterans.
He likes weekend reprieves from the fast pace of life. As both a physician and veteran, he knows that reconnecting with fellow vets can be healing. For those in high stress, active duty situations, it gives veterans a chance to decompress. Whether enlisted or commissioned, there is something extraordinary about the camaraderie among military veterans. Within the vast network of veterans, there exists an undeniable ability to connect because of that special gift of military fellowship.
Dr. Owen recognizes that needs are very different depending on the situations each veteran endured. He, himself, was a cold warrior. Although he experienced a tremendous amount of stress in his job as a fighter pilot, he understands that this is a decidedly different type of pressure than dealing with a hot war. Not having to endure hot action and being able to avoid the horrors associated with a battlefield helped him tremendously in his transition to civilian life. The horrors of war can be very tough for vets to resolve. Interacting with fellow veterans is part of the healing process, and utilizing resources such as the Kniestedt Foundation is an exceptional opportunity to do so. The ability to divide one’s burden by connecting with others can heal a veteran’s heart. The ability to relieve another by taking in their story is enormously healing and affirming for the listener as well. Kip Owen puts it rather simply: “The bonding and brotherhood of service to others lasts forever.”
Dr. Kip Owen resides in McAllen where he offers orthopedic surgery from the Orthopedic Sports Medicine Center and at Doctors Hospital at Renaissance. When he is not with his patients, he enjoys the Brush Country and time with his wife Paula, children, and 10 month old grand daughter Ryan Kaye Quin.
For more information about Dr. Kip Owen’s practice, contact:
http://www.osmsportsmed.com
