Opal "Eddie" Luella Keith

KEITH, LIKENS, ALLERDING, KAISER, SHOOK, MEALHOW, LOHRER, KUCERA, MCCLAUGHRY, GABEL, MELSHA

Posted By: dbeier (email)
Date: 12/26/2008 at 11:53:02

SHELLSBURG: Opal "Eddie" L. Keith, 94, formerly of Cedar Rapids, died Thursday, December 18, 2008 at Crestview Acres in Marion following an extended illness.

A Celebration Of Life conducted by her family will be held at 10:30 AM, Monday at Phillips Funeral Home Chapel in Vinton. Interment will be held at Oakwood Cemetery in Shellsburg. Friends may call at the funeral home from 3 to 5 PM on Sunday. A Memorial Fund has been established.

Opal Luella "Eddie" Keith was born December 17, 1914 in Brandon, Iowa to Dellmer "Jack" Louis Likens and Carrie (Allerding) Likens. All her siblings Viola Likens Kaiser, William Likens, Charlotte Likens Shook, Hilda Likens Mealhow, Lyle Likens and Robert Likens preceded her in death.

Eddie attended school in Brandon where she was a good student. She married John Keith December 24, 1930. They had three sons Otho Delmar (Jane) Keith, deceased, David Ian (Bonnie) Keith, deceased, and Steven Dean Keith.

She was always a hard worker, for many years Eddie was manager of Hilda's Flower Shop in Independence, Iowa where she was a member for the VFW Auxiliary and had many good friends. When the flower shop closed she went to work in the Housekeeping Department at Mercy Hospital in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. After she pretended to retire she and a friend started their own cleaning business where she lied about her age so people would not realize they were hiring a 70 + woman to clean their homes. When she could no longer manage the housekeeping she spent hours doing needlework which she would sell to ladies in her apartment complex and giving away thousands of dish scratchers to any and all who came into her acquaintance.

Eddie devoted herself to her grandchildren Debra (Gary) Lohrer, David (Linda) Keith, Daniel Keith (deceased), Lori Kucera, Melanie Sue (Michael) McClaughry, Thomas Keith, and Scott (Sue) Keith along with her great grandchildren and great great grandchildren. She is also survived by a daughter-in-law Virginia Gabel and two step grandchildren Kenneth and Michael Melsha. She made a huge impact on all their lives.