Dr. Kiepfer

Dr. Richard Kiepfer, age 77 passed away Friday, February 20, 2015 at his home in Kerrville, Texas.

Dr. Kiepfer was born April 12, 1937 in Brooklyn, New York. He received a B.A. degree in 1958 and a M.A. degree in 1959 from Columbia University. In 1963 he earned his M.D. from Seton Hall College of Medicine and Dentistry. Dr. Kiepfer did his residency in General, Orthopedic and Vascular Surgery. He entered the Navy on September 29, 1966 as a Lt. JG and rose through the ranks, retiring as Captain on December 31, 1980.

Dr. Kiepfer served as Chief Medical Officer on the USS Liberty during an unexpected armed attack in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea on June 8, 1967. Severe structural damage to the USS Liberty and extensive personnel casualties were incurred. Dr. Kiepfer performed emergency surgical operations for over thirty hours on his shipmates, even though wounded himself. Dr. Kiepfer was awarded the Silver Star, Purple Heart, Presidential Unit Citation, Combat Action Ribbon and the National Defense Medal.

During his military career, Dr. Kiepfer served on the National Board of Medical Examiners, 1964 and the Board of Nuclear Medicine, 1976. He served as Chief of Surgery, Hospital Commander at the Naval Air Station Albany, Georgia, Chief of Nuclear Medicine, Director of Professional Services at the National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, MD, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Institutes for Professional Education and was the Founder of the American College of Nuclear Cardiology. Dr. Kiepfer also taught at several Universities including an Assistant in Chemistry, Columbia University, Lecturer in Orthopedics, Harvard University, Assistant Professor at George Washington University, Clinical Assistant Professor at Howard University and Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Texas.

Dr. Kiepfer was the Consulting Physician to the President, the Vice-President, the Supreme Court and the Congress of the United States and was the Consulting Physician to the Foreign Diplomatic Corps of Washington, D.C.

Those left to honor and cherish his memory are his wife, Maria and her children, Rafael and Kariana Delgado.

The family will receive friends in the main chapel of Kerrville Funeral Home from 6 to 8 p.m., Tuesday, February 24, 2015. Celebration of life services will be held 10 a.m. Wednesday, February 25, 2015 in the main chapel of Kerrville Funeral Home with full military burial honors at Ft. Sam Houston National Cemetery in San Antonio, TX at a later date.

The family request memorials to the Purple Heart Association, 877-743-4111, USS Liberty Veterans Association, P.O. Box 680275, Marietta, GA 30068 or the American Contract Bridge League, 6575 Windchase Blvd., Horn Lake, MS 38637-1523.

The family invites you to leave a message or memory at www.kerrvillefuneralhometx.com by selecting Obituaries. Select "Sign Guestbook" at the top right of the individual memorial.

Arrangements are under the direction and personal care of the professionals at Kerrville Funeral Home. (830) 895-5111.

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