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Obituary (WA): Ronald Charles Brockman '64

Posted on 01/15/2019

A celebration of life and potluck will be held at the Koniag Center on Near Island Friday, Dec. 28 at 5:30 p.m. for Dr. Ron Brockman, 77, who died Saturday, Dec. 8, 2018 in DuPont, Washington, of natural causes. Services were also held for Dr. Brockman in Washington. Ronald Charles Brockman was born on December 14, 1940, in Kodiak, Alaska to Rose Madsen and Laurence Brockman. Ron was an adventurer in the spirit of his maternal grandfather, Charles Madsen, a Danish seafarer, fur trader Alaskan pioneer and Dean of Alaska Big Game Guides. But Ron went to far-off places and savored adventures that his grandfather never dreamed of experiencing. His dreams were larger than life, yet he knew how to aim to meet them anyway. He parachuted from perfectly good airplanes, provided health care to Afghan refugees and engaged in business enterprises such as gifts shops, charter businesses, fitness centers and a restaurant all in Kodiak in between his busy orthopaedic medical practice. As a boy, Ron hiked all around Kodiak Island, hunting and trapping with his great uncle, Eli Metrokin, another bear hunting guide. He was a Cub Scout, Boy Scout and achieved the rank of Eagle. After graduating from Kodiak High School in 1958, Ron held several different jobs including commercial salmon fisherman, deckhand on a salmon tender, crab cannery worker, pile buck on a pile driving crew and police officer. His interests and avocations were varied and diverse. He enjoyed skydiving, scouts, flying, and the Big Brother Program. He joined the Alaska National Guard from 1957 and later enlisted in the Marine Corps. In 1960 Ron was appointed to the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland and afterward attended the University of Alaska, Seattle University, University of Washington, and finally, the Alaska Methodist University where he graduated in 1968 with a double major in biology and political science. After graduating from AMU, he applied to veterinarian school and osteopathic school. He was accepted to both, but chose the latter since he heard a veterinarian had just opened a clinic in Kodiak. He attended Kansas City College of Osteopathic Medicine for four years. During his schooling, he and his wife, Susan Brockman, brought three children into this world: Leif, Tonya, Dayna, whom he loved dearly and was fondly proud of. While a student, Ron kept his options open in Kodiak. He bought a cabin cruiser so that he could conduct nature trips around the island. Once Ron graduated, he decided to specialize in orthopedics. He completed his internship in Boston, did a residency in San Francisco with the U.S. Public Health Service, and a two-year residency at Madigan Army Medical Center in Tacoma, Washington. After his training, Ron opened North Pacific Medical Center in Kodiak and a gift shop called The Ships Chandlery, which carried hiking and outdoor gear, boating supplies and novelty gifts. To make sure he covered his bases, he opened a state-of-the-art fitness center called Doc's Nautilus Fitness Club. It had an indoor running track, aerobics room, hot tub and sauna. Ron also taught hiking classes at Kodiak College, a very popular course. Ron bought a second boat, the Sea Surgeon, with the intention of taking people out for Kodiak nautical discoveries, and ultimately, providing medical care for the villages. In the 1990s Ron opened a business in Anchorage called AIM - Alaskan Independent Medical Evaluations. While many would say that, in light of Ron's accomplishments, he was ready to settle down and rest on his laurels, his life refutes those claims. He was just getting started. There were many new adventures ahead. In April 1986, during the conflict between the Afghan mujahadeen and Soviet Union fighters in Afghanistan, Ron treated Afghan refugees and freedom fighters at the Afghan Surgical Hospital in Peshawar, Pakistan under the auspices of Orthopedics Overseas. He arranged for a young field commander, Nazir, to be treated in Seattle for an incapacitated left arm. "He will return to the battlefield", said Ron. "I did 100 surgical procedures at the Afghan hospital and barely scratched the surface”. A doctor with the Alaskan Army National Guard 3rd Scout Battalion, Ron organized a group called Alaskans for a Free Afghanistan and raised money for much-needed medical supplies. Winning the confidence of some of the mujahadeen leaders, Ron was invited to come to Afghanistan. He brought 30 boxes of medical supplies. Dressed as an Afghan soldier, Ron was escorted from Peshawar to a refugee camp, and then smuggled across the border in a truck crammed with people. The truck passed through 13 checkpoints. When Ron finally made it across the border he was overjoyed. "It had taken me months of planning and weeks of work and waiting to get this far. I felt I was returning to a place I had lived in a previous life. I felt a kinship to Afghanistan and its people that I've never known before. “Ron marched with the Mujahadeen for many days, camping with them every night while they shared one chicken among 12 people and cooked naan, a flat bread baked in the ground. He watched the soldiers shoot off homemade rockets at Soviet planes. He admired their courage to try to save their country. In April 1992, Ron made his third trip to Afghan Trauma Center in Peshawar, accompanied by his son and daughter, Leif and Dayna. In their luggage they brought many donated prosthetic arms and legs. Ron joined the U.S. Naval Reserve in 1989. As an orthopedic surgeon, he was called to active duty in February 1991 at the fleet hospital on the Arabian Peninsula. Reflecting on his experience, Ron said, "The most impressive thing that I have noticed about the people in this unit is their sense of purpose.... providing the highest quality medical care available in the world to our Marines in the front lines on the Arabian Peninsula. “Ron’s next stint took him to Central America where, as part of the volunteer crew of the Mercy Ships' medical vessel, Caribbean Mercy, he worked at camps serving refugees displaced by Hurricane Mitch. Recalled Ron, "When the doctors and nurses would walk around the community in their scrub 'uniforms' with the Mercy Ship tag - people came up to us to hug us, shake our hand and bless us for our work, with tears in their eyes. “Ron was in active duty with U.S. Navy at Bremerton Naval Hospital, in August and September of 1998, and was in active duty with the U.S. Navy Hospital in Guam, three times during 1999-2000.He retired as Captain from the U.S. Navy Reserve in January 2001.Dr. Ron Brockman's life attests to the following epitaph: "He had a passion for life. He was very patriotic. He was a very giving and helpful to those in need. He loved his children. He loved his dogs. He was generously honest and caring especially to those who were wounded, sick or in need. His children and grandchildren share an unbreakable bond of his unique, good humor, his ardent love of life and sharing its beauties with others. “Preceded in death by his parents, Rose (Madsen) Short and Laurence (Red) Brockman, and dog, Shrek, Mr. Brockman is survived by his former wife, Susan Brockman of Kodiak; his son and daughter-in-law, Leif and Arlene Brockman (Luke, Isaac) Astoria, Oregon; daughter and son-in-law, Tonya and George Lee (Nevin, Carlie) Kodiak; daughter, Dayna Brockman (Ruby) Kodiak; and siblings, Mary Doubt and Bruce Short of Kodiak. The family asks that, in memory of Ron's honor, contributions be made to one of his favorite charities: St. Jude's Children's Hospital, the Shriners or the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

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