John Addison Keen, Sr. was born on October 24, 1930 in Adolphus, KY. He left this life to be with his Savior, Jesus Christ, on January 18, 2018.
John was the youngest son of William Bishop Keen and Martha Ida Keen and moved to Indiana at the age of twelve with his parents and five siblings, brothers Lindon & Vora and sisters Orgalean, Helen & Jean, all of whom have preceded him in death.
John resided in Franklin, IN for the final year of his life. He attended Washington HS on the Westside of Indianapolis where he met and then married his high school sweetheart, Shirley Ann Craig.
From this marriage they had three children:
- A son, John, Jr. (wife Barbara), who provided them with two grandsons: James (wife Mary) & Joseph (wife Elizabeth), who provided them with seven great-grandchildren: (from James & Mary) Grace, Josiah, Micah & Anna and (from Joseph & Elizabeth) Jacob, Olivia & Madeline;
- A daughter, Sharon who provided them with a granddaughter Lynn (husband Marc), who provided them with five great-grandchildren: Elaine, Annabel, Charlotte, Henry & Jay;
- A son, David (wife Becky), who provided them with three grandchildren: Alyssa, Tyler & Katy.
In 69 years of marriage, God blessed John & Shirley with 3 children, 6 grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren.
John worked for 46 ½ years as a Tool & Die Maker for Allison Division of General Motors in Indianapolis, retiring in 1996.
John also enjoyed his fellowship with Bethel Missionary Baptist Church, where he was a faithful member for 67 years, serving as Clerk for some of those years. He was also a loyal member of Indianapolis Masonic Lodge #669 for 65 years, serving as Worshipful Master in 1987 and the Eastern Star where with Shirley they served together as Worthy Patron and Worthy Matron.
John was an avid runner all of his life and loved the competition from his high school track team to numerous mini-marathons and one full marathon held in Columbus, OH. He also coached both of his sons on their Little League teams.
For relaxation, John enjoyed working in his yard and watching IU basketball (especially when Bobby Knight coached) and Friday night boxing matches.
John will be greatly missed by his family and his brothers & sisters in Christ at Bethel Missionary Baptist Church.
