James L. Keefe Sr.

James "Jim" L. Keefe Sr., 86, of Fort Wayne, passed away on Tuesday, December 31, 2019. He was born to the late John Joseph and Eva Louise (Gelinas) Keefe on December 4, 1933 in Malden, MA. In 1951 he joined the U.S. Army the 82nd Airborne and retired from the military in 1986. During his time in the service he received numerous awards including the Humanitarian Service Medal, Good Conduct, National Defense Service Medal, Gold Recruiter Badge with Sapphire Achievement Star, Parachutist Badge, Expert Badge (M-16), Korean Service Medal, Republic of Korea Unit Citation Meritorious Commendation, Presidential Citation Bronze Star, National Defense Service Medal, SS Qual Badge (Rifle), and FTRT ID Badge (Production). Jim was an ordained minister and he pastored in several different churches during his lifetime. He attended Wesleyan Methodist College in Central, SC and graduated from Salem Bible College in Salem, OH. Up through 1999, Jim was the coordinator for the Toys for Tots in Fort Wayne, IN. He loved to collect clocks and watches. Jim was avid bird watcher and enjoyed his German Shepherd dogs.

Jim is survived by his wife, Betty Layman-Keefe; children, Karen Keefe, Sunday "Sunny" (Rick) Helstrom, Tina Price, James (Trudy) Keefe Jr, Thomas Keefe, Michael (Joanna) Keefe, and Heather Keefe; mother of his children, Patricia Keefe; step-children, Phillip (Sarah) Layman, Sarah (Kim) Parrish, Pricilla (Jerry) Vess, and David (Amy) Layman; 24 grandchildren; and host of great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his son, Patrick Keefe; brothers, Edward Keefe and Francis Cheever; and sister, Ellen Cheever.

Funeral service will be on Monday, January 6, 2020 at 11:00 am with visitation one hour prior at Greenlawn Funeral Home (6750 Covington Road, Fort Wayne, IN 46804). Visitation will also be on Sunday, January 5, 2020 from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm at the funeral home. Burial will follow the service at Greenlawn Memorial Park.

Memorial contributions may be made to Riley Children's Hospital and the Shepherd's House.