Keith Ramon Kirsh

Keith Ramon Kirsh

Keith Ramon Kirsh, born in Akron, Ohio, March 16, 1928 to the late Fred J. and Virginia M. (Keith) Kirsh, passed away during the early morning of Monday, July 27, 2009, at the age of 81.

He was most recently living at Life Care Center of Plano, in Plano, Texas. He was preceded in death by his wife of 44 years, Joan Mechem Kirsh, in 1995. He is survived by his son, David, and wife, Maryfrances, and grandchildren, Daniel, Richard and Maryanne, of Columbus, Ohio; his son, Laurence, and wife, Linda, and granddaughters, Kristina and Johanna, of Reston, Virginia; his sister, Shirley Ann Werner, and her family of Fairlawn, Ohio; and dear friend, Joyce Bryson, and her family of Richardson, Texas, who did so much to care for him in his last years.

Cremation has taken place and an Honor Guard Ceremony will be conducted for his interment at the Dallas-Fort Worth National Cemetery in Dallas, Texas. Memorials may be made in Keith's memory to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society (www.nationalmssociety.org).

Keith graduated from North High School in 1945. He received an accounting degree from the University of Akron, where he was a member of Phi Delta Theta Fraternity. Keith married Joan in 1951 and entered the Army for a tour of duty that ranged from Hawaii to Germany. He was honorably discharged in 1953 and began a series of accounting jobs that took him and his family from Akron to South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, and eventually Dallas, Texas in 1984.

Keith was a great Dad to his two boys, and later caregiver to his wife who was struck with Alzheimer's, even as he was contending with his own multiple sclerosis. He served as a deacon in churches, belonged to a Rotary Club and the Masons, helped lead a Scout troop, played the trumpet, and sang in a church choir, among other things. But the main thing is this: When asked recently what he thought of Jesus Christ, he answered, "He's my Savior." And in that hope we have every expectation of seeing him again.