“Bob devoted himself fully as he played a prominent role in establishing the history of the Dayton Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 44, and also the real sacrifices made by all Dayton police officers,” said retired police Officer Steve Grismer, a police historian. “Bob worked hard, every single day, to make certain that the 24 Dayton police officers who made the supreme sacrifice could rest in peace knowing they are remembered with some sense of justice and recognition.”
Mr. Keen lost a five-year battle with cancer and is survived by his wife, Beverly Ann; four daughters; one son; nine grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
Funeral services were held at noon Dec. 30 at Schlientz & Moore Funeral Home on Wayne Avenue, with burial at Dayton Memorial Park cemetery.
For close to 30 years, Mr. Keen single-handedly wrote and edited the monthly Dayton police newsletter, which he named “The Aegis.” In so doing he kept 850 active and retired officers connected one to another.
“Bob liked to call himself ‘tracer of lost persons’ Grismer said. “He researched the biographies of all 24 fellow officers killed in the line of duty. His pride was in creating a large archive through his collection of equipment, artifacts, photographs, newspaper clippings, and documents.” Some are displayed, and the rest are stored at the Dayton FOP lodge, 4275 Powell Rd.
Mr. Keen, who was a homicide detective, was awarded the Dayton police department’s Medal of Valor after he was shot and injured in the line of duty. In 2002 he was honored by fellow retirees as the “officer of the year.”
He served as president of the Sons of the American Revolution, Dayton chapter, and in that position acquired and presented American flags to a number of area schools who were not displaying a flag.
And he was a proud veteran of the U.S. Marines, where he earned the rank of sergeant.
It was in the month of August, in 2007, that Officer Keen was awarded what he said he considered “a remarkable gesture” that he would forever cherish.
During a meeting of the Fraternal Order of Police, Mr. Keen was called to the front of the room.
Lodge secretary Patty Tackett handed him a neatly folded American flag and explained that the flag arrived via mail from a battle station in Iraq. It had been forwarded to the lodge by Gunnery Sgt. Charles Hurley, a U.S. Marine and a Dayton police sergeant who then was on military duty in Iraq.
Tackett read the letter out loud:
“This is a flag that my platoon carried during Operation Matador and it has a lot of meaning to us,” Hurley wrote. “I’d like Bob to have it.”
The letter continued: “Ever since I was a young cop I thought that Bob Keen epitomized the Marine motto ‘Semper Fidelis.’ Since Bob is a former Marine, this flag will hold some meaning for him. I think it is appropriate that he receive it in front of the police organization he has served so tirelessly over the years.
“Fate is fickle here, so this isn’t something I want to delay.”
With tears in his eyes, Officer Keen accepted the flag and said, “I will cherish this forever. God bless Chuck and all the troops.”
Contact Dale Huffman by calling (937) 225-2272, e-mailing him at dhuffman@DaytonDailyNews.com or writing to him at 1611 S. Main St. Dayton, OH 45409.
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