Terrence Keating – a lawyer, community leader and loyal former student – died on Friday after suffering a stroke. He was 84 years old.
Friends and family have described Keating as loyal, devoted, committed, faithful and loving. A true man for others, defined by service to self and a friend to all.
“Terry was a gentleman like you will never meet. He always found the good in others,” said Terry Desmond, president of AJ Desmond & Sons Funeral Directors and lifelong friend. “He was incredibly charitable with his time. He devoted himself to others, that’s just who he was.”
The Detroit native was also a proud graduate of the University of Detroit Jesuit High School, the University of Notre Dame, and the University of Detroit School of Law. He regularly attended sporting events at both schools with his family and friends and raised funds to support students and services. Keating is also a graduate of the University of Detroit Law School and a member of the Michigan State Bar.
Keating worked for a local law firm before joining Detroit Bank & Trust and then Michigan National Bank, where he specialized in estate planning and planned giving. He then joined the law firm Berry Moorman, where he focused his practice on estate planning, trusts and not-for-profit law.
Keating has used his expertise to help support local nonprofits and other organizations, serving on various committees and boards, including the U of D Jesuit Schools and the Schools of the Archdiocese of Detroit.
He was a past president of the Detroit Golf Club and the Detroit Athletic Club, where he helped oversee major renovations. He also served as past president of the Notre Dame National and Detroit Alumni Associations, Oakland County Catholic Social Services, the American Heart Association, and the Cheboygan Housing Commission.
In addition, he has served on the board of alumni of the National Alumni Council of the University of Notre Dame, the Hundred Club, the Financial and Estate Planning Council of Detroit, the Incorporated Society of Irish American Lawyers, the Lighthouse of Oakland County Planned Giving Committee, the Planned Giving Roundtable of Metro Detroit, and the DAC Foundation Board of Directors.
He was particularly proud of his more than 30 years of involvement with Alcoholics Anonymous and sponsored many members.
Keating was a member for decades of Gesu Church in Detroit and St. Hugo of the Hills Church in Bloomfield Hills. He also attended services in Cheboygan, where he moved in his later years.
Keating and his wife Noreen, former president and longtime CEO of the Oakland County Lighthouse, moved from their Oakland County home to the Cheboygan area full-time about four years ago. year. But Terry said he ‘failed to retire’ and continued to stay active with his clients and his favorite causes, including the Cheboygan County Community Foundation, an organization that helps businesses create jobs in the community.
“This honest and faithful man acted on the principles of women’s equality, ethnicity, disabilities and more before they became movements,” his 59-year-old wife said. “To me, he was a wise counselor and a steady rock that supported me. That was true for everything our boys and I have done.”
Noreen shared that Terry loves and gives selflessly unless you try to steal “the good cookies”, a joking nod to her habit of “pie for breakfast, cookies at night”.
Keating is survived by his wife Noreen; sons Patrick and Kevin; daughter-in-law Karen, as well as numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.
He was predeceased by his sisters, Joan Michael Keating, Mary Anne McDonnell, Rosemarie Roehl and Noreen Smith; and grandson, Brendan Keating.
Visitation is scheduled from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday at AJ Desmond and Sons in Royal Oak with a scripture service at 7 p.m.
The funeral service is set for 10 a.m. Saturday at St. Hugo of the Hills Catholic Church in Bloomfield Hills. The service will also be broadcast live on stugo.org.
Memorial contributions may be made to the University of Detroit Jesuit High School and Academy, The Keating Scholarship Fund, 8400 S. Cambridge Ave., Detroit, Mich., 48221 and/or Cheboygan County Community Foundation, Keating Fund, 218 N. Main St., Suite 102, Cheboygan, Michigan, 49721
