Patrick "Pat" Daniel Keenan

In the pre-dawn hours of April 18, 2025, Patrick “Pat” Keenan passed from this earthly life into the heavenly arms of his waiting mother, going back to the truest peace he had ever known. His heart, mind, body, and soul were released.

Although Pat died of complications due to Wernike Korsakoff Syndrome, he never succumbed to it. To his last days, Pat smiled, conveyed feeling, and fought for his life unlike any patient his medical attendants had ever seen in more than 40 years of service. Hence, Pat's final days were lived as fully and as passionately as his previous 71 years. He smiled like he had never cried and fought like he had never lost.

Pat's story is incandescent, a magic carpet ride of people, places, and plot twists. He was a gifted baseball player, a self-taught musician, a loyal friend, a loving son, brother, and husband. Pat worked hard, played hard, loved hard and lived hard. He genuinely experienced life, both the good and the bad, and interwove both into the soundtrack of his being.

Pat loved his youth in Meyerland, a suburb of Houston, Texas. He roamed its streets with his brother Mike, and a host of neighbor boys, exploring ditches and ball fields and back yards under a sultry, summer night sky. No fence was too tall to hurdle, no roof too high to climb, no popsicle truck too fast to chase, no ball too hard to catch. And now, Pat is once again reveling in those Meyerland days, going back to a time in which he was the champion of his universe.

As a boy, baseball was Pat's life and calling. He loved the Meyerland Lions, where he played shortstop. Imagine him now, diving for a catch to rob a runner of a hit, giving a laser-like throw to the first baseman for a double play, or a quick snap throw to the second baseman for a force out. Pat played for the Meyerland Lions, the Meyerland All Star team, and the Westbury Pony League White Sox. Baseball has been called a spiritual game, its goal for the batter to come home, to get back to home plate. And now, it can be proclaimed that Pat is indeed going back, once again triumphantly sliding into home.

As an adult, Pat was always tenacious, and often troubled. He simultaneously battled alcoholism and anxiety, diabetes, and insomnia. In spite of this, Pat doggedly built a small business and struggled to meet the practical and emotional demands of everyday life. In this sense, Pat was like a circumpolar star, a celestial body that never reached its zenith. Yet, somehow, in the face of all of this, he could still laugh hard, fully, and deeply. And now, Pat is released from his troubles, blissfully going back to a place where his star will burn bright and eternal.

Pat Keenan, a magical force of light and furor, is gone from this life, but continues in another. Remember him for his heart and his soul, his smiling eyes, his athletic prowess, and musical desideratum. Think of him when you see a poetic double play in which the shortstop tosses to the second baseman, who then twists like a ballerina in mid-air throwing perfectly to first base. Feel Pat's essence when you hear the crack of a bat, a harmonica riff, or an

uncontrollable laugh. Pat will truly be present in that moment, running swiftly through the bases of life, his heart joyfully swelling, and yelling lustfully, “Catch me if you can! I'm going back!”

Pat was the son of Leo M. Keenan and Charlotte Koenig Keenan. Surviving loved ones: Justin Williams (son), siblings Michael Keenan and wife Ann Trentin, Kathleen (Katy) Keenan Zipprian and husband Charles Zipprian, Maureen Graf and husband, John Graf, and Kelley Keenan. Nieces and nephews: Carly Graf, Delaney Graf, and Chance Keenan Zipprian. Love of his life, Teri Lawson Keenan.

Funeral Mass Holy Ghost Catholic Church 6921 Chetwood Dr, Houston, TX 77081 May 20, 2025, 10:00 am.

In lieu of flowers, please make donations in Pat’s name to Holy Ghost Catholic School at https://holyghostcs.org/in-memory-pat-keenan-class-of-67