Lewis Owens Obituary

Lewis R. Owens, retired resident of Colorado Springs and native of Colorado, passed away on Thursday, October 23, 2014.

Lewis was born to Lewis Raybourne Owens and Bertha Mae Miller Owens on July 31, 1923 in Arapahoe County, CO. He graduated from Englewood High School in 1941 and went on to study and graduate from the University of Denver in 1949 with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering. Lewis continued his studies at the University of Colorado where he graduated in 1956 with a Master's of Science degree. Lewis received his Professional Engineering certificate from the State of Florida in 1967.

Lewis served his country in the United States Army 289th Field Artillery Observation Battalion and was in combat during the battle of Luzon in WWII from January 1945-June 1945. He was honorably discharged on January 26, 1946 having attained the level Technician 4th Grade.

Upon returning stateside, he served in the United States Naval Reserve for many years and was honorably discharged on September 27th, 1976 having achieved the rank of Lieutenant.

As an engineer in the aerospace industry and avid private pilot, he was drawn to projects in his professional life which involved space travel, flight and guided defense systems. His team designed and built the LC-39 site which launched Saturn V rockets utilized by the Apollo missions to the moon. Lewis retired from Lockheed-Martin in 1988 after a long and dedicated career.

After retiring, he enjoyed traveling with his lovely wife Keene. They were avid RVers and traveled to all 50 states in the US along with every state in Mexico and all but one of the provinces and territories in Canada. They recently celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary on September 11, 2014 in Colorado Springs at the home of family friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents Lewis Raybourne Owens and Bertha Mae Miller Owens and Brother Raybourne Franklin Owens.

Lewis is survived by his loving wife Keene Nichols Owens and half-sister, Norma Jean Gruenfeldt Hale, wife of David A. Hale. He is also survived by his four children: sons Leroy (Mary Lou) Owens, David (Dennis) Owens, Donald (Jennifer) Owens, and Cheryl Owens; seven grandchildren: Becky, Greg, Katie, Devin, Nate, Craig, Sara; and great-grandchild: Justin, and Baby Owens due the end of October, 2014.

Memorial Service, 1:00PM, Thursday, November 13, 2014, Village at Skyline, 2365 Patriot Heights, Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Graveside Service, 2:30PM, Friday, November 14, 2014, Fort Logan National Cemetery, Denver, Colorado.

Memorial contributions in Lewis's name can be made to the Fisher House Foundation, 111 Rockville Pike, Suite 420, Rockville, Maryland 20850 an organization that provides temporary housing for family members of military families undergoing medical treatment, or to the National Museum of the Pacific War, 340 E Main St, Fredericksburg, TX 78624 where Lewis was a founding member.