Dr. Ernest C. McKibben, Jr. delivered babies and treated Kirkland families medically for decades. How many Kirklanders are too young to remember when he retired from his practice in 1986? Community members can enjoy time with him to honor his career and life in the Kirkland community during a reception from 2-5 p.m. Feb. 21 at Kirkland Heritage Society on Market Street. Photos and clippings will be on display, with introductions at 3 p.m. Anyone who was doctored by the McKibben family is encouraged to attend. A tribute from the Evergreen Hospital staff will be part of the program.

Dr. McKibben is part of an eminent lineage. He and his father Dr. “Senior” Ernest McKibben practiced medicine for 73 years, most of it in Kirkland. Doctor “Senior” was a young missionary doctor in China for a time and came to Kirkland as a young man. (He passed away at age 95).

McKibben was born in 1920 and raised in Kirkland on State Street. He attended Washington State University and graduated from Medical School at George Washington University in 1945. As a young doctor he toured in Korea and after completing his internships joined his father in practice in Kirkland in 1949. He and his father were active in the formation of the first Kirkland Hospital on Kirkland Avenue, where the Heathman Hotel stands today. He delivered the first baby in the original Kirkland Hospital and the last baby before the small hospital was closed. He was involved in planning for the Evergreen Hospital from its infancy. He was its first chief of staff there and served two terms.

McKibben, who now resides in his retirement home in Redmond, will turn 90 in September.

For information, contact the Kirkland Heritage Society at 425-827-3446.