Obituary of William "Poncho" Thomas Keith Jr
William Thomas Keith Jr. was born at the family home in River Rouge, Michigan on December 18, 1947. He was the second oldest of eight children born from the union of the late William T. and Lillian (Broom) Keith Sr. He grew up in the Southgate and Wyandotte communities. During grade school he participated in boxing and earned his nickname "Poncho" from his coach which stuck with him the rest of his life. He would attend Wyandotte High School.
Poncho began working alongside his father at the age of 13. They would continue for many years as roofers until William Sr. retired. At that time, Poncho took employment as a roofer and serving as a foreman for the Rood family at Gayle Construction for many more years. He was an extremely hard worker teaching his children by example to put in an honest day’s work.
Poncho married the love of his life the former, Nancy Kitsko on May 24, 1978 in Toledo, Ohio. He enjoyed bowling and playing pool for many years and appreciated a good game of darts. William loved to socialize with friends.
For many years the family enjoyed boating, fishing and camping. Much time was spent on the Detroit River catching walleye which was brought home and cleaned for dinner. Although William was quite devoted to his work putting in many hours, he always seemed to make time to support his children at their extracurricular activities and was a mainstay in the lives of his grandchildren.
William “Poncho” Keith Jr., age 72 of Brownstown passed away at home under hospice care on Tuesday, September 15, 2020. In addition to his parents his passing was preceded by a son: William “Little Bill Bill” Keith III.
To cherish his memory he leaves his beloved wife Nancy of Brownstown; four children: Lori (Darrin) Balogh of Southgate, Stacy (Mike) Hightower of Carleton, Mike (Meredith) Keith of Huron Township, and John (Pam) Badilla of South Rockwood; four sisters: Anna England of Southgate, Barb Holmes of Taylor, Mary (Louie) Smith of Taylor, and Sarah (Ron) Sledge of Wyandotte; three brothers: Virgil (Brenda) Keith of Wyandotte, Louie (Delee) Keith of Taylor, and Don (Barb) Keith of Florida; and eleven grandchildren: Jacob and Alec Balogh, Samuel and Seth Farrah, C.J. and Clayton Hightower, Morgan, Kendrick, Madison, and Molly Keith, and Brandon and Bryan Badilla.
A Celebration of His Life will be held at 11:00am on Saturday, October 3, 2020 at Metro City Church- Riverview Campus, 17760 M-85(Fort Street), Riverview, Michigan 48193. Arrangements have been entrusted to Merkle Funeral Service, North Monroe; 2442 North Monroe Street, Monroe, Michigan 48162 (734) 384-5185.
Online guests may leave words of inspiration and comfort or share a photo by visiting www.merklefs.com.
