Dr. David Donald Kliewer

Grandma profile: #405639

Marine pilot who sank Japanese submarine near Wake Island four days after Pearl Harbor. Was captured and spent four years in Japanese POW camp in Japan. Graduated cum laude from Harvard and became respected physician in Corvallis, Oregon.

March 14, 1917 - March 21, 2007

David D. Kliewer, age 90, died Wednesday, March 21, at home, after an extended illness.

David was born March 14, 1917, on the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation, Birney, Mont., to Peter and Katherine Kliewer, who were Mennonite missionaries. David was the fifth of six children.

His family moved to Bluffton, Ohio, where he graduated from high school in 1935. He then attended Wheaton College, where he graduated in 1939 with a degree in physics. He then enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in order to learn how to fly and to support his close brother Paul's medical education. As a Marine fighter pilot, he was stationed on Wake Island in the Pacific, where he was captured by the Japanese two weeks after the Pearl Harbor attack. He then spent four years as a POW in Japan. He was awarded the Silver Star for his service. His war experience had a great impact on him leading to a strong belief in peace, nonviolence and service to others.

After applying to Harvard Medical School from POW camp, he was accepted for his medical training. He graduated in 1951 cum laude and finished his internship, residency and chief residency at New York Hospital of Cornell University in 1956. While there, he met and married Jean Dulin, a nurse at New York Hospital. They were married in Cooperstown, N.Y., in 1952.

He finished a fellowship in hematology at University of Washington 1956 to 1958 and then was the only internist on Maui, serving at the physician for the sugar company 1958-1961. In 1961, the family, now with three children, moved to Corvallis, where David served as a physician with the Corvallis Clinic until his retirement in 1984. He was awarded the Oregon Medical Association's Citizen Doctor of the Year in 1979.

David was an avid community activist throughout his life. He helped found Benton Hospice Service, helped found the YMCA in Corvallis, served as campaign chairman for the new Heartland Humane Society shelter, was a primary activist in the smoke-free coalition, and he donated land for parks and to Habitat for Humanity.

He was also active politically, serving on the Corvallis City Council 1991-1993. His wise and insightful letters in the Corvallis Gazette-Times were well known to citizens of Corvallis. He felt strongly that war and violence should never be used to solve conflicts and actively participated in opposing the Vietnam War.

He was devoted to social justice, equality and compassion to all. He belonged to the ACLU and NAACP, and was strongly influenced by the teachings of Gandhi, Martin Luther King and most importantly Jesus' teachings in the Sermon on the Mount.

Dave was an avid hiker and bicyclist. He could often be found on his bike on Corvallis bicycle paths and roads, and also led many bicycle trips around Oregon. He was a strong supporter of environmental protection and participated in the Green Belt Land Trust.

He is survived by his wife, Jean, of Corvallis; daughter Jody of San Antonio, Texas; sons David Jr. of Battleground, Wash., and Peter of Portland; and five grandchildren. Donations can be made in David's name to Community Outreach, Habitat for Humanity, Benton Hospice Service, Oregon Food Bank, Chintimini Wildlife Rehabilitation and the Heartland Humane Society.

A celebration of Dave's life will occur in Corvallis at the end of April.

• Death Source: Habegger, David, page 16 Apr 2007