Robert George Keeney

His son, Kevin, went first. No doubt to scout the best fishing holes in heaven, which Kevin and Robert George Keeney are now enjoying together for the first time since 2004. They are probably being joined by his fishing buddies and his brothers Jack (Clarice) & Don in a big Keeney family reunion.

Truth be told, Bob is probably doing a lot more talking in heaven than fishing. It will start with corny jokes, which were always a dead giveaway by a pursing of the lips and a click of the teeth before he started them. It won’t really matter that everyone knows what’s coming. There will still be smiles on all the faces.

Bob had that effect on people for all of his 93 years. He put them at ease and brought them into his circle with a sense of humor that was as disarming as it was groan-worthy. Until his cancer diagnosis, Bob was the youngest 90-year-old a person could meet. No one would guess he was even in his 80s, thanks to the good genes he inherited from his mom and dad, Hugh Arthur and Esther E. Keeney. And from 93 years of living, he leaves behind a legacy of puns and one-liners that have worked their way deep into the fabric of his sister, Kay (Del) Bishop, daughters, Colleen (Bob) Knape, and Kim (Rich) Freiberger, stepdaughters, Juli (Tom) Blodgett, and Jennifer Crampton, favorite stepson, Jeff (Lisa) Crampton, cousin-like-a-daughter, Lyla (Jeremy) Baier, and lots of special nieces, nephews, and friends, who repeat the groaners to all to his many grandchildren, great-grandchildren, grandnieces and grandnephews.

Bob needed that sense of humor when he was stationed at Camp Lejuene Military Base in the Naval Hospital and during his deployment by the Navy as a combat medic in Korea from 1951 to 1953. After his honorable discharge from the navy, he worked as an apprentice pharmacist in Chicago, before attending and graduating from Ferris State University in 1957.

He worked at several local pharmacies in Grand Rapids, Michigan, including Fuller Avenue Pharmacy where he would be introduced to the love of his life, Jeralyn (Loop) Keeney. His gentle ways and dumb jokes won her over and they would enjoy many adventures together for more than 52 years. For 38 of those years, he was a pharmacist for Meijer, and even after he “retired,” he continued delivering prescriptions and visiting patients at Cook Valley and other retirement facilities. He always had time to speak with people he met through his work, even if he was running personal errands.

Bob gave generously of his time to all the many people he knew on Grand Rapids’ northeast side. He liked to stay busy, serving as a lector at St. Alphonsus church, volunteering for the Tax Counseling for the Elderly committee, sitting on the Grand Rapids Property Tax Appeal Board, volunteering at the Veteran’s facility, golfing, bowling, and playing cribbage on Wednesday nights at the Casino Club. He touched many lives and always left people smiling, shaking their heads while groaning, or both.

The family will receive guests at Reyers North Valley Chapel on Tuesday, March 19, between 4 pm and 7 pm, and again at St. Alphonsus Church on Wednesday, March 20, from 10 am until the funeral Mass at 11 am. Lunch will be served following Mass in the St. Alphonsus Parish Center.

In lieu of flowers, Bob would love for people to send Jeri their favorite bad joke or make a donation to St. Alphonsus Food & Clothing Pantry, Faith Hospice, or Talon’s Out Honor Flight.