Duane Junior Keck (1929 - 2021)

Born 5 Jul 1929 in Oketo, Marshall, Kansas, United States

Ancestors

Died 16 May 2021 at age 91 in Fort Walton Beach, Okaloosa, Florida, United States

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Biography

Duane was born in 1929. He was the son of Casper Keck and Ida Webber. He passed away in 2021. Duane Junior Keck passed away on Saturday, May 16, at the Fort Walton Beach Medical Center, with Doris, his wife of 66 years, at his bedside, along with two of his children and his pastor Scott Hohn.

Duane, son of Ida and Casper Keck, was born in Oketa, Kansas, on July 25, 1929. After his mother died in 1934, Duane and his younger sister Dolores moved to Illinois to be raised by his grandparents, the Webers. He joined the Air Force in 1949, where he met the love of his life, Doris. They married on April 15, 1954.

Duane worked at the Libby Owens glass factory in Ottawa, Illinois, for several years before becoming an air traffic controller. He started working at Midway Airport in Chicago, Illinois, where he would become the number one fan of the Chicago Cubs. He then moved to the Air Traffic Control Center in Aurora, Illinois. He retired in 1972, and Duane and Doris moved to Fort Walton Beach, Florida, in 1973.

Duane was a true servant of the Lord and showed his commitment to God through his faithful service to Trinity United Methodist Church, where he served as a lay leader, district lay leader, conference lay leader, and jurisdictional lay leader of the Southeastern Conference of the United Methodist Church. One of Duane's favorite activities was volunteering to play Santa Claus for hundreds of children in the Fort Walton Beach area for over 30 years. He loved seeing the joy on the children's faces and never turned down an opportunity to be Santa. As a layperson, he officiated at many weddings and also funerals, where he would say, ""People say he's gone to a better place, but he's gone the BEST place.""

Duane is survived by wife Doris, children Pam, John, and Tammy, and sisters Dorothy Griffee and Deedee Axelton, as well as 13 grandchildren and 21 great-grandchildren.

A memorial celebration of Duane's life will be held at a later date at Trinity United Methodist Church.

Donations can be made to Trinity United Methodist Church Men's Group.

Published by Northwest Florida Daily News on May 21, 2020.

Name: KECK, DUANE JUNIOR Rank & Branch: SSGT US AIR FORCE War Period: KOREA Date of Birth: 07/25/1929 Date of Death: 05/15/2020 Buried At: SECTION E-21 ROW E SITE 10 Map layout of BARRANCAS NATIONAL CEMETERY Cemetery: BARRANCAS NATIONAL CEMETERY Cemetery Address: NAVAL AIR STATION, 1 CEMETERY ROAD PENSACOLA, FL 32508 Small

Sources

• "United States Census, 1930", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XQ24-XS2 : Fri Aug 04 08:22:08 UTC 2023), Entry for Casper E Keck and Ida M Keck, 1930.
• "United States Census, 1940", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KWC3-9MR : Sat Jul 22 07:45:44 UTC 2023), Entry for John J Webes and Elnora Webes, 1940.
• https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/239314206/duane-junior-keck