More detail on this person: Richard Clark Keehn was born in Berkeley on October 2, 1936 and died Friday, December 20th, 2019 with beloved wife of 48 years, Karen, and daughter, Lynn, by his side. Rich spent his youth in the Bay Area, graduating from Burlingame High School in 1955, and attended San Mateo JC before enlisting in the US Army in 1956. He took pride in his 15 year career as an army helicopter pilot and served in Indonesia, Korea, Germany and 2 combat tours in Vietnam. His assignments included: Chief Instructor, Instrument Examiner, Accident Investigator, Military Liaison, Director of ROTC for the 11western states and Company Commander in Vietnam. During this time he earned numerous decorations for Service and Valor including: a Silver Star, 2 Air Medals, a Purple Heart and Army Aviator of the Year. He resigned from active duty as a Captain in 1972. Rich met Karen in 1971 and went on to have a second distinguished career in the wine industry. He was the Founding Chairmen of the California Association of Winegrape Growers; A District Director for the Wine Institute; a member of the California World Trade Commission and was a Director on the California State Board of Food and Agriculture for 8 years. Rich and Karen were also US Delegates to the OIV (the International Wine Organization) and attended General Assemblies in Portugal, Russia, Paris and the US. Simultaneously, Rich and Karen raised a combined family of eight children and built the world's first solar winery, McDowell Valley Vineyards. During their tenure, McDowell wines were sold in 48 states, Canada, Britain, France and Japan. Among other honors, they were poured at Reagan's White House and at the American Ambassador's residence in Paris. As a team, Rich and Karen worked with renowned chefs all over the US, several of whom came and gave cooking classes at the winery. Rich was known for his sense of humor, often pulling pranks and telling jokes, frequently to the embarrassment of his wife. He wrote poetry, was an avid reader and a life-long music lover, a passion shared with Karen. They attended concerts all over the world: from the SF symphony to rock and folk concerts, often taking their children nd friends. Rich and Karen loved to entertain and his culinary feats were legendary - he cooked while listening to classical music and dancing around the kitchen with Karen. Rich loved to sing and play his banjo. He loved his big dogs, fast cars, the Indy 5 Hundred, the 49er's, scuba diving, fishing and skiing; a shared family passion. After retirement, he cooked at Plowshares for 3 years until back pain sidelined him. In his last 2 decades, Rich suffered from Parkinson's and Lewy Body Dementia - a likely result of his service to his country and exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam. In this last and most ferocious battle, his strong constitution and his love for Karen kept him going far longer than usual, baffling his doctors with his ability to persevere. During the last 2 & ½ years he received excellent loving care from Karen and the staff at Neuro-Restorative in Marin County. Rich is survived by his combined family of eight children: Leslie Keehn, Lynn Keehn (Bartels), Liz (Elise) Keehn (Sims), Michael Keehn; Bill Crawford, Libby Crawford, Katie Crawford (Nyborg) and Julie Crawford (Fetherston), their spouses, 20 grandchildren and 4 great grandchildren, who called him Grumpa, and too many friends to count and list. A private military interment in Ukiah's Russian River Cemetery and public Celebration of Life will be announced at a later date. Donations may be made to the CAWG Scholarship Fund or The Michael J. Fox Foundation.
Burial information: Ukiah Cemetery
This information was last updated 12/30/2019
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Date posted on this site: 03/10/2024
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