John R. Keller Jr.

John Raymund Keller, Jr., 72, passed away February 15, 2021. He was born on June 9, 1948, to John and Helen Keller in Lexington, KY. John served two tours of duty as a Force Recon marine in Vietnam and was honorably discharged in 1972. Along with David Wetzel, he started United Extracorporeal Support, Inc. in 1985, a business that provided perfusion services for the open-heart program in Louisville. He worked as a perfusionist with well-known surgeons in the Louisville area, Dr. Laman Gray and Dr. Bill DeVries, and assisted in Kentucky’s first heart transplant. John loved traveling and sports – especially basketball and golf. If there was a UK basketball game on, you could be sure he was watching it. Most recently, he enjoyed a few skydives in the mountains of Colorado. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by two brothers, Jim and Craig. John is survived by children, John C., Vincent, Rudy (Natalie), and Christina Byers (Alex); two grandchildren; and siblings, Mary Simpson (Bud) and Mike Keller (Julie). Visitation will be held from 12 PM - 2 PM Saturday, March 20, 2021 at Arch L. Heady & Son at Westport Village, 7410 Westport Rd. Louisville KY 40222 (502) 426-9351. A memorial service will follow at 2 PM, Saturday March 20, 2021 at Heady Funeral Home. Expressions of sympathy in John's memory may be made to the charity of donor's choice. You can reach out to the family by posting memories and condolences at www.kraftfs.com.