Robert Schutt Obituary

Schutt Jr., MD
Robert Clark
Schutt Jr., MD
October 21, 1947
February 24, 2025

Robert Clark Schutt, Jr., MD, a husband, father, and physician, passed away on February 24, 2025, following a brief illness. Bob's life centered on family and serving others. He was born on October 20, 1947, to Harriett Merle Johnson and Lt. Col. Robert Clark Schutt, Sr., USAF. Bob forged a path of service and achievement from an early age. A lover of aviation, he received a private pilot license on his sixteenth birthday and later attended the United States Air Force Academy, class of 1969. He was awarded the Commander's Trophy as the most outstanding graduate in his pilot training class. This qualified him to serve as an F-4E Phantom Aircraft Commander flying over 270 missions during the Vietnam War. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the air medal with six oak leaf clusters for his service. He returned to military service as a field surgeon during Operation Desert Storm and actively cared for wounded soldiers on both sides of the conflict.
Bob earned his medical degree from Texas Tech University School of Medicine in 1977 and returned later as Professor and Chairman of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery. He was a member of Alpha Omega Alpha Honorary Society. Throughout his career as both a private and academic surgeon, Bob served patients and his community with compassion and courage.
A founding partner of the Colorado Springs Orthopaedic Group, Dr. Schutt practiced medicine for thirty years. In addition to his practice, he was associated with the Shriners Childrens Hospital in Shreveport, Louisiana for several years. He was especially proud of the work done in their Outreach Clinic in Panama where pediatric musculoskeletal patients are identified for treatment in the US without charge.
Bob's desire to teach and nurture benefited countless students and his family. He inspired his three children to pursue careers in medicine and left a legacy of caring for others. Bob's grandchildren will continue to know him through a love of nature and adventure. He taught each to ski the slopes of Crested Butte, fly fish the waters of the Slate River, and explore the mountains of Colorado by mountain bike.
Bob considered the greatest gift of his life to be his loving marriage to Suzanne. They met on a blind date while he was a cadet at the Air Force Academy. During pilot training Bob often drove his '69 Corvette a bit too fast to spend a brief weekend with her. They married in 1970 and shared 54 incredible years together.
Colorado Springs and Crested Butte were the backdrop of family life. He spent weekends with his children and their horses competing in Three Day Eventing as well as the occasional fox hunt. A member of the Broadmoor Golf Club, he enjoyed the exhilaration, frustration, and friendships golf afforded.
As a lifelong student, Bob pursued many interests. Classical guitar lessons often began at 7:00 a.m., much to the chagrin of sleeping children. He traveled the world with Suzanne, family, and friends: diving the waters of Fiji, capturing photographs of cheetahs in Botswana, rafting the Zambezi River and Grand Canyon, hiking the Milford Track and others. Tandem biking became a favorite way to explore the world. True to life, Suzanne was always by his side, "Old Bear" and "Old Faithful".
Robert Clark Schutt, Jr. is survived by his wife Suzanne O'Donnell Schutt, three children, Robert Clark Schutt, III (Amy Klavin Schutt), Alison Elizabeth Smith (Jeffrey Preston Smith), and Christopher Andrew Schutt (Katie Lauren Schutt), and grandchildren, Savannah Jennifer Schutt, Robert Clark Schutt IV, Maxwell Nikolai Schutt, Sutton Preston Smith, Sadler Schutt Smith, Teague Sumner Smith, and Carter Elizabeth Schutt. A younger brother, William Henry Schutt Brothers, also survives as well as extended family and many friends that he held dear. LTC (Ret) Robert Clark Schutt, Jr. will be interred at Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors. The family asks in lieu of flowers, donations be made to The Shriner's Children's Hospital Outreach Program in honor of Robert Clark Schutt, Jr., MD.