David H. Keyes

Heaven gained a new angel, David Henry Keyes, age 71, passed away unexpectedly on October 14, 2023, at University Hospitals Geneva Medical Center in Geneva, Ohio.

He was born on April 8, 1952, in Ashtabula, Ohio, the son of Hayes and Alma (Pananen) Keyes Piispanen. Dave was a resident of Harpersfield, Ohio.

Dave attended Ashtabula High School and proudly served his country in the United States Army.

On August 11, 1979, in Austinburg, Ohio, Dave married his beautiful bride and the love of his life, Rose Marie Burkholder of Harpersfield, Ohio. He was a thoughtful, devoted and loving husband; together they shared forty-four wonderful years of marriage.

Over the years, Dave held many different positions at several different companies; he was employed by Famous Recipe and Mr. Chicken restaurants, where he was an Assistant Manager and eventually a Manager. From 1981 to 1985, he owned and operated Keyes Auto Service. He also spent some time working in the maintenance field and at Franey’s Auto Service in Madison, Ohio.

Dave was a wonderful, loving and caring man who enjoyed helping others. His true source of pride, happiness and joy came from spending time with his beloved family.  

He was mechanically inclined which allowed him to fix just about anything. He enjoyed working on cars and listening to a wide array of music from the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s, especially Elvis Presley.

Dave is survived by a large, loving family, his wife, Rose; his brothers: Gordon, Theodore and Thomas Keyes; his sisters: Karen Dixon, Becky Whitehead, Evelyn Fleischmann and Vickie Stevenson; his brothers-in-laws: Verlin Dixon, Terry Whitehead, Ken Stevenson and Jeff Burkholder; his sisters-in-laws: Brenda Keyes and Susan Burkholder; his numerous nieces and nephews along with their families.

He was preceded in death by his parents; his brother, Daniel Keyes; his sisters-in-law, Joyce and Cindy Keyes; his brother-in-law, Julius Fleischmann; his nephews and a great-niece.

Visitation will be held on Thursday, October 19, 2023, at 1:00p with a funeral service to follow at 2:00p at Fleming & Billman Funeral Home, 526 W Prospect Road in Ashtabula. Burial to immediately follow the funeral service at Unionville Cemetery in Harpersfield.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of David H. Keyes, please visit our floral store.