Dr. Larry K. Keefer

On September 11, 2020, after a long bout with Parkinson’s Disease, Dr. Larry Kay Keefer passed away in Silver Spring, Maryland. He was surrounded by his loving family and faithfully served by his caregivers. Born in Akron, Ohio on October 28, 1939 to Wesley Keefer and Jane Keefer (nee Earhart), Larry is survived by his wife of 58½ years, Julie; his brother James, and sisters Karen & Carol (with sons Mike & Mark, Larry’s nephews); his son, Steve (wife Amal) and daughter Simona (husband Jeff); and his grandsons Sam, Simon & Josh. Simona served as lead caregiver and loving assistant over the last eight years of Larry’s life.

Larry met Julie at Oberlin College, in a classic tale of ‘opposites attract’. He studied science and was an athlete, while Julie was artistic and a lover of books. Although they started off with multiple differences, their ideals were similar and brought them closer together. They got married and later he converted to Judaism, much to the delight of Julie’s parents and grandfather, who escaped concentration camps twice. Larry pursued a career as a scientist, joining the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health in 1971. He spent the next four decades exploring the chemistry and biology of nitric oxide (NO) until his retirement in 2015, helping lay the groundwork that led to others winning a Nobel Prize. His professional legacy includes over 300 publications, 51 patents and the training and mentoring of many of today’s leaders in the field of medical research.

In addition to loving his family and using science to help humanity, Larry was a lover of music and basketball. He had a Tom Brady-like age-defying season of playing competitive basketball on a team with his son Steve, and relished taking his grandsons to Wizards games (especially when they were playing his beloved Celtics). A man with the gift of rhythm in his hips, at his 80th birthday party and even two days before his passing, Larry was boogying to tunes ranging from Little Walter to the Rolling Stones. He gave Soul Brother Number One (James Brown) a run for his money with his dance moves.

A lifelong humanitarian, in lieu of flowers Larry would appreciate donations to a worthy cause. Three of his favorites were the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Oxfam and The Joint Distribution Committee (JDC or ‘The Joint’).