Dr. Edwin Roy Keller passed away in the early morning hours of March 25th, in his home in Columbia, Missouri, where he resided with his wife, Kathy, ending his two and a half-year struggle with brain cancer. His family is forever grateful for the extraordinary medical care provided by Ellis Fischel Cancer Center at University Hospital and the caring nurses and personnel of Compassus Hospice.
Roy was born in 1940 in Memphis, Tennessee, to Edwin Roy Keller, Sr (E. Roy) and Helen Paulene (Jones) Keller. He attended school at Valley View High School, in Jonesboro, Arkansas, and went on to higher education degrees in English and Journalism, earning his Bachelor of Arts degree at Arkansas State College; a Master’s degree and Doctorate at the University of Arkansas and completion of Journalism Studies at Kansas State and the University of Kansas.
Dr. Keller was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor in January of 2017 while teaching part-time at the University of Missouri (Mizzou). Roy moved to Columbia after retiring from Southeast Missouri State University (SEMO 1984-2008) in Cape Girardeau, where he was employed for 24 years as a Journalism Professor and advisor to the student newspaper, The Capaha Arrow. Previously, Dr. Keller was an English Professor at Sterling College, in Sterling, Kansas.
Roy lived, for most of his professorial career, in Missouri, but had deep roots in Jonesboro, Arkansas. His only sibling, Allen Keller, and wife Ann, reside on Keller family land in Jonesboro that was originally settled by their great grandfather, Aden Amaziah Keller. The Keller family was one of the earliest pioneer families to settle in Craighead County. Roy is survived by his wife, Kathy (Beitler) Keller, and their two children, (daughter) Rebecca (Becky) Keller-Tracy and (son) Ryan Aden Keller.
A memorial service to honor Roy, will be held at Broadway Christian Church in Columbia, Missouri, on July 11 th , at 10:30 a.m. at the church’s Outside Worship Area. Social distancing will be observed and the service will also be available to view virtually online.
The graveside memorial service to honor Roy will be held at Keller Chapel Cemetery in Jonesboro, Arkansas on Sunday, July 26th at 2:00. Social distancing will be observed and the service will also be available to view virtually online.
Condolences: The family requests that photos and written memories of Roy be sent to roykellermemorialservices@gmail.com instead of sending flowers or cards. Submissions to the email address will be available on a memorial website as well as shared at the memorial service(s).
For information on how to view the virtual service and memorial website, email
roykellermemorialservices@gmail.com (by emailing this address, you will receive an email back with instructions on how to view the memorial service(s) on your device and how to post a photo, or written memory of Roy that will be available on the private memorial website for friends and family of Roy to view).
Donations may be sent to either the Broadway Christian Church (Attn: Ingrid Luckenbill, 2601 W. Broadway, Columbia, MO 65203) or the Keller Chapel Cemetery (Jerry Lewis, Treasurer, 707 Amberwood Cove, Jonesboro, AR 72401).