Obituary: Remembering Wilbur (Will) Keating

Wilbur (Will) Keating, of Carson City, passed away on Friday, May 24, at the age of 92.

Will was born and raised in the Black Hills of South Dakota by Bernard and Ethel (Lewis) Keating alongside four siblings: Dennis, Edwin, Bernard, and Betty. He graduated high school in Edgemont, SD, in 1950, then attended Colorado A&M University for two years before transferring to the University of Colorado.

His college years were interrupted while he served as a mountaineer trainer for the Army at Camp Hale during the Korean War, where he often spent lonely days isolated in a remote hut. After his service, Will returned to Boulder, graduating in 1956. He then moved with his brother Bernard to Berkeley, CA.

Will’s professional journey led him to Sacramento in 1958, where he worked in financial management. His roommates at the time were dating girls in a neighboring apartment, and the group introduced him to their fourth roommate, Joy Wade, who had been away for the summer. Will and Joy married in 1962 and built their 62-year marriage on love, kindness, laughter and equal partnership. They remained lifelong friends with the Sacramento clan.

In 1974, Will moved to the Public Employees Retirement System of Nevada (PERS) and became its Executive Officer after a few years. He served as President of the National Association of State Retirement Administrators, organized lobbying efforts in Congress, and set national operating standards for public retirement systems. By his retirement, PERS’s portfolio had grown to multiple billions, with a return rate in the top quadrant of institutional investment portfolios. Will also served for 16 years on the Board of Directors of the International Game Technology Corporation. After his retirement, Will volunteered as a carpenter for Affordable Housing of Nevada and as a Court-Appointed Special Advocate for minors in need.

Will and Joy had four daughters: Lisa Keating (Joe McEllistrem), Miya Keating MacKenzie (Chris), Shana Keating, and Trena Keating (David Pitofsky). Their family grew to include nine grandchildren: Walker, Elia, Wilder, Reese, Genevieve, Teddy, Dahlia, Charles, and Lorelai.

Will coached his daughters’ softball teams, ran the local ski school, and piled the four girls into their station wagon for fishing and camping trips. The family saved all year to take summer vacations to far-flung locations. Joy and Will, with another family, bought a small cabin in the woods on Forest Service land. He raised his girls, and eventually grandkids, on ambitious hikes, believing it was the pathway to self-reliance and courage, that an afternoon wandering in the forest or scaling a mountain filled a heart and enlivened creativity. Friends were always invited along, and as his daughters moved away for their own adventures, their old friends would stop by when in town to visit with Will and Joy, even into their 80s. Will was close with sons-in-law, nephews, neighbors, and former colleagues. He was twinkly-eyed and shared jokes, songs, and warm words with nurses and fellow residents in the senior living center until the end. Over the years and since his death, many people have told his daughters that Will had made them feel safe and special.

Will is survived by Joy, their four daughters, their sons in law, and their grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held at St. Teresa Catholic Church (in the Chapel) in Carson City on August 16th at 10 a.m., followed by a reception at 11:30 a.m. All are welcome.