Keith William Reardon

Our beloved son, brother, father, grandfather and husband Keith Reardon left to meet his Lord and ­Savior in the early morning hours of August 9, 2024, with his wife Travis by his side. Keith was born March 24, 1959, in Spokane, WA, the third of four sons of Ken and Shirley Reardon of Walla Walla.

Those who knew him will miss his sense of humor, wit, determination, love of music, and passion for life. In his 65 years on Earth, he taught and coached thousands of kids and young adults in a variety of sports. He was a natural and hard-working athlete who loved to introduce others to sports and help them hone their skills.

In his youth, Keith attended Davis Elementary, John Sager Middle School, Pioneer Junior High and Walla Walla High School, graduating in 1977. Although basketball was his favorite sport to play, he excelled in baseball (pitching) and football. He had extraordinary football talents, playing quarterback and special teams as a punter and placekicker. Avid Wa-Hi fans will recall his last second, game-winning 49-yard field goal to propel Wa-Hi to a huge, unexpected win at Richland his senior year.

Keith’s bright future in football dimmed when he sustained a serious injury during practice. This would have stopped most people in their tracks, but Keith persevered. After a grueling rehab period in a cast, he continued his career. He set a conference record (which still stands today) with a 52-yard field goal for Walla Walla Community College. He then played for the University of Nevada-Las Vegas for two years on a football scholarship, and he and his squad earned a place in its Hall of Fame. A couple of decades later, he would discover that he had completely severed his ACL in the incident.

He loved his years in Vegas, where he had many carefree adventures with his friend Kenny. He could show you where the best 50¢ breakfasts could be found, take you to a jai alai game, and then teach you how to play a modified version of it in his apartment with a ball made of toilet paper and tape.

Keith spent almost every summer of his childhood living near Old Faithful in Yellowstone National Park, where his father served as a seasonal park ranger. A chance encounter with a grizzly sow (that resulted in him being chased) caused Keith to frequently imagine that bears were hiding just beyond his reach in the woods.

This, however, did not dampen his love for Yellowstone or the great outdoors. As a teenager, he worked odd jobs at the park, such as washing dishes and tour buses, cooking/burning food and cleaning rooms. As an adult, he led teenage work crews deep into the backcountry for projects such as campsite and trail restoration, fence and bridge building and erosion control as a Youth Conservation Corps Ranger for the National Park Service. He would spend more than 50 nights a summer sleeping in a tent and countless days mentoring the youth in the program.

Keith met Valerie Grummt in Yellowstone, and they married in May 1985. Three children would soon follow: Abbey, Luke and Olivia. Though they would later divorce, Keith and Valerie were committed to raising their children together.

After a decade on the west side of Washington coaching and teaching at Chimacum and earning his master's degree in education and Pedagogy, Keith served for two decades as an elementary PE teacher and basketball coach at Prospect Point Elementary in Walla Walla. The kids loved his playful style, competitive spirit and his desire for all kids to be active. He was methodical about maximizing participation time and was delighted when the soundtrack that he blared sparked spontaneous dancing.

He served the kids and his community, donating his time and expertise to create one of the most successful extracurricular programs ever in the Walla Walla Public schools, often having more than 100 kids on “the team” at a time. Known as the TOPPS fitness program at Prospect Point, it revolved around jump roping but also provided many other ways for students to participate. He was well-known in the community for the numerous halftime shows at high school, college and university events, which featured his elementary students performing choreographed jump-roping routines and all kinds of physical fitness stunts such as pogo-stick jump roping, unicycling, and cup stacking.

It was during his later years at Prospect Point that he met an emergency substitute teacher named Travis Goff. Taking great comfort in each other's company, they felt free, seen, understood, and joyful. The two opened their hearts and their pasts, rededicated themselves to Jesus and married on July 13, 2018. They found a wonderful sense of community at Mission Church, where they embraced the fundamentals of a covenant relationship with each other and with God.

As a father, Keith encouraged, cheered on and coached in order to be present in the interests of his kids. His love for competition, hard work and athletics was instilled in them and became the bonding factor for their relationship. He sat in many gym stands and field bleachers to support Abbey, Luke and Olivia and always expressed how proud he was of them. The officials also heard from him every now and then when there was an unjust call. On top of that, they shared many adventures and memories in their beloved Yellowstone. His main goal was to raise “quality human beings,” and he loved his children dearly. He wholeheartedly welcomed stepdaughter Edie, who affectionately named him “Dada Keith” and “Big Daddy.” He was thrilled that Abbey, Luke, and Olivia chose to become parents, blessing him with five granddaughters and one grandson.

In May of 2019, Keith miraculously survived a bilateral brainstem stroke that left him as a non-verbal quadriplegic for the rest of his life. Although most would not consider this a miracle and would succumb to such a tragic event, he chose to live despite his circumstances and the doctors’ prognosis of certain death. He, Travis and Edie lived in four different states in the course of a year in order for him to receive specialized treatment. The first wave of Covid – which was devastating to many people in rehab facilities – brought them home to Walla Walla to stay. He overcame countless infections the doctors said he would surely not survive.

His cognitive function remained intact, and he bravely faced these unbelievable challenges with Travis as his primary caregiver. Every day was a new test of resiliency and courage for him, and he utilized whatever tools possible to communicate with those around him. He rarely missed a Seahawks, Mariners, or Gonzaga game or a sermon from Mission Church in Walla Walla or Lifegate Church in Omaha. He looked forward to visits with his family, went to Edie’s basketball games at the YMCA and had just started going back to Prospect Point to watch basketball games when his health took a turn.

He ultimately lost his health due to immunotherapy treatment and aggressive Merkel Cell Carcinoma. He never stopped fighting and showed all around him the sacred value of life. After becoming disabled, he was always concerned with the well-being of those around him above himself. He frequently talked about how he was blessed with the best parents ever and loved his family very much.

Keith is survived by wife, Travis; children, Abbey Garza (Marc), Luke Reardon (Trista), Olivia Reardon (partner, Adrian Ceja); stepdaughter, Edie Goff; and six grandchildren. He is also survived by his parents, Ken and Shirley Reardon of Walla Walla; brothers, David Reardon (Deanna) of Burbank, WA, and Scott Reardon (Brenda) of Walla Walla; sister-in-law, Shelley Reardon; and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his brother, Tim in 2023.

A Celebration of Life will be held on Sunday, September 29, 2024, at 2:00 PM at the Prospect Point Elementary Gym, 55 Reser Road, Walla Walla.

In lieu of flowers or in memorial, contributions may be made to the Blue Mountain United Way Adopt-A-Student program: https://www.uwbluemt.org/adopt-student or (509) 529-1183.