ILENE KEATS

Age 94, of Rancho Mirage, California, previously of Detroit, MI passed away June 26, 2004 of natural causes. She was born January 3, 1910 to Harry Jacob and Bella Elbinger in Boston, MA. Her family moved to Detroit in 1915. Mrs. Keats, who lived in Detroit most of her life, worked for Bayer McElrath, an Engineering Consulting Company. After retiring, Mrs. Keats became a docent at Cranbrook Art Museum. She also learned to Braille and transcribed books for the Braille Institute. Active civicly, she participated in numerous political campaigns at the local, state and national levels. She also served as the Executive Secretary for the Detroit Chaper of the NAACP during the 1950's and 1960's. In 1961, she accepted an invitation to work on Vice President Lyndon Johnson's Committee on Equal Employment Opportunity in Washington, D.C. Serious art collectors, Mrs. Keats and her husband were instrumental in helping many young Detroit artists gain recognition. Mrs. Keats was preceded in death by her husband of 65 years, Alfred W. in 1995. She is survived by two sons: David G. of Troy, MI, and Neil M. of Palm Desert, California, six grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren. The family has planned a private memorial service; in lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in her memory to the Network Gallery of Cranbrook Art Museum, P.O. Box 801, 39221 Woodward Avenue, Bloomfield Hills, 48303-0801.