MADISON, WI (March 3, 2009) \u2013 A memorial service for John Philip (Phil) Keillor, 71, will be conducted at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Arbor Covenant Church. Keillor died Friday after suffering severe injuries in a fall while ice-skating with his youngest grandchild on February 15.
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Keillor, who is the brother of author and humorist Garrison Keillor, was active in the Evangelical Covenant Church and was a 2002 recipient of the Central Conference J. William Fredrickson Urban Ministries Award for his longtime involvement in providing housing for homeless men in Madison.<\/p>\n
Keillor was born May 26, 1937, in Anoka, Minnesota. He was married for 49 years to Ann-Britt Edlund. She survives.<\/p>\n
He earned a bachelor\u2019s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Minnesota and a master\u2019s degree in ocean engineering from the University of Wisconsin, making him the first coastal engineer in the state.<\/p>\n
Following one severe winter during which three homeless men died from exposure in Madison, Keillor and a handful of others started a homeless shelter that later became known as Transitional Housing and later on as Porchlight. In addition to serving these organizations as a board member for more than 20 years, Keillor was a regular volunteer on the late shift at the homeless shelter. He was known in his community as \u201ca voice for the voiceless.\u201d<\/p>\n
In addition to his wife, survivors include his son, Douglas, and two daughters, Kristina Keillor and Lisa Collins.<\/p>\n
Visitation will be observed from 5 to 7 p.m. tonight at Cress Funeral home and again on Wednesday at the church from 10 a.m. until the time of the service. Memorial gifts can be given to Arbor Covenant Church, Porchlight Inc., or the Global Development Network.<\/p>\n