Obituary of Francis-J. Keefe

LONDONDERRY - Francis J. Keefe, 85, died peacefully Dec. 19, 2011, at Pleasant Valley Nursing Center in Derry after a long illness. He was born on May 29, 1926, in Lawrence, Mass., to Jeremiah and Alice (Chabot) Keefe. He was a resident of Windham for 30 years before moving to Londonderry in 1979. Frank attended Lawrence, Mass., schools, but felt that serving his country during World War II was more important than graduating high school. At 17, he joined the U.S. Navy, serving as a gunner's mate in the Armed Guard from 1943 to 1946. One of the proudest days in his life, thanks to the efforts of a very good friend, was receiving his diploma at the age of 83 during a very special ceremony at Lawrence High School. Frank's lengthy career in the public sector began in 1958, when he was hired as part-time building inspector for the town of Windham. For the next 20 years, he wore many hats in service to the town, including fire chief/forest fire warden, health officer, disposal site supervisor, assessor and clerk of the works for projects at the elementary and middle schools. From 1978 to 1986, Frank served consecutively as code enforcement officer for the towns of Wolfboro, Londonderry and Hooksett, amidst brief periods of work in the private sector. He returned to Windham in 1986, serving as code enforcement officer there until his retirement in 1996. Frank continued working as a building consultant and clerk of the works on various projects and, as late as the onset of his illness, was still actively employed as groundskeeper for Applewood Golf Links in Windham. Throughout his long and varied career, Frank received many commendations and awards from not only the towns he served, but the state of New Hampshire, as well. He accepted each with humility, always pausing to give credit to those who had assisted him in each endeavor. Frank was a charter member of American Legion Post 109, and received his 60-year membership award in 2010. He was also a retired member of the NH Firefighter's Association. In his free time, he enjoyed gardening, woodworking, jigsaw and word puzzles, historical/military books and TV programs, patriotic music, family gatherings and casino gambling. He is survived by his wife, Elaine (Zins/Haegle) Keefe; stepchildren Pamela Haegle and fianc&#233; Joseph Panto of Londonderry, Patricia Antoon and husband Michael of Methuen, Mass., Glenn Haegle of Derry, Gary Haegle of Windham and Wendi Devlin of Windham; step-grandchildren Erika and husband Kevin, Kristen, Justin, Glenn, Bryan, Chelsea, Jaymi, and Cheyann; step-great-grandchildren Rylie, Broden and Kellen; foster grandchildren Gennifer and Frankie; foster great-granddaughter Alyxis; several nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his brother, Bernard Keefe; his sister, Alice Scott; and his first wife, Dolores (Bedard) Keefe. . SERVICES: Calling hours are Thursday, Dec. 22, from 4 to 7 p.m. at Peabody Funeral Homes and Crematorium, 290 Mammoth Road, Londonderry. A funeral service will follow in the funeral home at 7 p.m. A burial with honors will be held Friday at 2 p.m. in the New Hampshire State Veterans Cemetery, 110 Daniel Webster Highway, Boscawen. Memorial donations may be made to the ;(function() { var adKeyValue = 't='; adKeyValue+= escape('clio=ALZ'); adKeyValue += escape('&cobrand=unionleader'); adKeyValue += escape('&linktext=Alzheimer\'s Association'); adKeyValue += escape('&linkurl=https://act.alz.org/site/Donation2?df_id=5080&5080.donation=form1&set.TributeType=MEMORIAL&set.custom.honoree_name=Francis Keefe&set.TributeMessage=A+gift+has+been+made+in+remembrance+of+Francis Keefe'); adKeyValue += escape('&fn=Francis'); adKeyValue += escape('&ln=Keefe'); var adClkUrl = 'http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?iu=/423686928/prod/obit-aff/obit-standard/clio-inline-1&' + adKeyValue + '&sz=1x1&c=1283756034'; var adImpUrl = 'http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ad?iu=/423686928/prod/obit-aff/obit-standard/clio-inline-1&' + adKeyValue + '&sz=1x1&c=1283756034'; document.write("<a href='" + adClkUrl + "' target=_blank>Alzheimer\'s Association<" + 'img' + " src='" + adImpUrl + "' style='width=1px; height=1px; display:inline;' /></a>"); }());, P.O. Box 96011, Washington, DC 20090-6011. To send a condolence, or for more information, go to peabodyfuneralhome.com.