Dr. Douglas McKinnon, a well-known plastic surgeon in Denver, died Aug. 7 from cardiac arrest. He was 75.
He collapsed in his kitchen two days before his death, according to his wife, Hannelore McKinnon.
A memorial gathering is planned at 11 a.m. Friday at Four Mile House Historic Park, 715 S. Forest St.
McKinnon did every kind of plastic surgery, from cleft palates to elective surgery – and for the past 15 years he concentrated on reconstructive surgery for women who had breast cancer.
In 1988, McKinnon received the Sue Miller Award, named for a woman who has been a cancer survivor for more than 35 years.
Miller estimated that McKinnon did hundreds of breast reconstructions.
“He was incredible,” she said. “He was a doctor who talked to you and listened to you and would spend extra time, especially with women who were afraid.
“He also did beautiful work.”
Those who couldn’t afford the surgery he helped monetarily, she said.
Patients loved McKinnon, friends and family said.
“He was a hall-of-famer in bedside manner,” said his son Mark McKinnon of Austin, Texas. “He was just one of those gentle souls.”
“He was kind and gentle and never sought the spotlight,” said his son Chris McKinnon of Denver.
He was named an outstanding plastic and reconstructive surgeon by 5280 Magazine.
Dr. Bob McCurdy, a retired general surgeon, called McKinnon “very talented.”
“He interned under me at Presbyterian,” McCurdy said.
McKinnon changed gears after retiring and took classes in things unconnected to medicine, his wife said – including opera, drawing and European and American history. He taught a class about the Rio Grande through the University of Denver VIVA program.
Douglas McKinnon was born Jan. 29, 1932, in Los Angeles and graduated from Los Angeles High School.
He graduated from the University of Colorado and earned his medical degree at McGill University Medical School in Montreal.
McKinnon was a co-founder of the state’s first outpatient plastic- and reconstructive-surgery clinic, the Center for Plastic Surgery, and for a time was chief of surgery at Presbyterian/St. Luke’s Hospital.
In 1954, he married Inga Hodgson, with whom he had three children. He married Hannelore Baker on Dec. 23, 1982.
In addition to his wife and sons, he is survived by his daughter, Laura Tackett, of Sonoma, Calif.; stepsons Warren Baker, Chris Baker and Martin Baker, all of Denver; and four grandchildren.
Staff writer Virginia Culver can be reached at 303-954-1223 or vculver@denverpost.com.
