Obituaries

Mr. Keith Harry Carlson

Keith Harry Carlson, 82, passed away peacefully on June 12 with members of his family by his side.
Born on July 16, 1940 at the Swedish Hospital in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Keith certainly lived his life to the fullest - and always the way he wanted.
He was the son of Harry and Esther Carlson. One of his favorite past times was getting his younger brother Richard and younger sister Karen (Schwartzbauer) into trouble.
His childhood could be summed up by football, hockey, skiing, boating on Bay Lake and causing a lot of ruckus (but somehow always getting away with it).
He attended the University of Minnesota and then joined the United States Navy. A Viet Nam veteran and proud American, Keith never failed to salute our nation’s flag and pay homage to his fellow servicemen, and women, particularly to those who never made it home.
He then followed in the footsteps of his grandfather, father and uncle to begin a career as a sales professional for Western Publishing. That job eventually took him to New York where he started a singles club and as a result, met the love of his life, Carol Ann. His attempt at trying to impress the young school teacher with the line “I sell children books, would you like some?” failed miserably at first. But after some steadfast persistence that was the cornerstone of his personality, he finally won her over. They wed on August 23, 1969.
One of Keith’s biggest accomplishments came in 1978 when his first and only son Kyle Stephen was born. Coming from a family line of Shriners, one of Keith’s proudest moments was when Kyle was elected to the Amran Temple Divan line - a continuation of the family’s leadership in the Shriner’s Organization.
His world changed again in 1986 with the miracle of a second child, one that would become the apple of his eye - and the spender of his money, as he would say. Christine Suzanne idolized her father and followed in his footsteps, forging her own career from the work ethic he instilled. He was always her biggest cheerleader, offering advice - whether asked for or not.
In 2004, the family relocated to Keith and Carol’s current residence on Lake Gaston. Life’s blessings continued to flourish over the years as his son married Kristen and he became “Grampy” to Felicity and Brennan, and then his daughter married Travis McKone and they welcomed Madison. Being a grandfather was his greatest joy, though it was a close tie between that and conducting his massive train village that took up the entire basement.
Keith had a strong personality and would stand up for whatever he believed in (right or wrong). He was as tough as stone - surviving a war, three heart attacks, strokes he never even knew about and - the most impressive of all of the feats according to him - marriage to Carol for nearly 54 years!
He was a Lutheran, Mason, Shriner, Veteran, boater, train enthusiast, small business owner, realtor, Minnesota Vikings fan, a wealth of (often useless) knowledge, and a dad joke extraordinaire.
He was as stubborn as he was strong. As gentle as he was giving. And as witty as he was wise.
He will be missed, but his sense of humor will carry loved ones through.
A service will be held at Lakeside Lutheran Church in Littleton, NC on Saturday, July 15 at 1:30 pm. And because Keith always loved a party, a celebration of life will follow at the family residence, beginning at 4 pm.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Masonic Home For Children located at 600 College St, Oxford, NC 27565; Shriners Children's Greenville located at 950 W Faris Rd, Greenville, SC 29605; or Shriners Children's Ohio located at 1 Children's Plaza 2 West, Dayton, OH 45404.
And as he’s always said, gotta go now!