Keith Johnson

Keith Collins Johnson, 63, passed away March 4, 2025.

Keith was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, July 1,1961, to his parents, Glade Almon and Betty Louise Brettell Johnson. He was the fifth of six children. We love our dear son and brother.

While growing up in Kearns, Keith learned to love football, baseball, basketball, golf, hunting, fishing, and cooking. In 1973, at the age of 12, he was selected to be on the Kearns Little League All-Star Team. At Kearns High School he was involved in debate club and football. In the summer of 1978 Keith worked on the plantations in Hawaii, picking pineapples. He graduated from Kearns High School in 1979, and was a speaker at the graduation ceremony. He served a mission in Kobe, Japan. Keith began working for the US Postal Service in November of 1982 and was a loyal employee the rest of his life, working there for more than 42 years, accepting a variety of positions, advancements, and challenges. When he passed, he was a Financial Systems Specialist for USPS and was well respected by his coworkers.

Keith loved books and was well read. He had a great vocabulary and loved chess, jigsaw puzzles, playing games, crosswords, and sudoku puzzles. He loved the outdoors, camping, wildlife, and was a great fisherman. One of his favorite things to do was to drive out to watch the bald eagles in Tooele County in early February every year. Keith had an uncanny ability to find and show us beautiful things in nature. His love for nature and wild animals was unrivaled. He could spot a deer in the mountains a "mile" away! He was thrilled to have had the opportunity to see the "largest living lizard" in the world. 😊

Keith loved watching the Utah Jazz, University of Utah, and BYU Football. In 1984, because of a charitable donation, he was able to be an honorary coach for the Utah Jazz during one of their games in Salt Lake City. As dad got older, Keith made sure to take him golfing on his birthday, including his 94th birthday, just months before dad passed.

Keith was a dear son, brother, uncle, and friend. He spent many of the last few years keeping a careful and close eye on his aging parents. He has been a great help and support to them. Mother will always cherish the memory of the last rose he brought to her for Valentines Day. He was always a very loyal son, brother, and friend and would be there when you needed him. Keith was often quiet or soft spoken, enjoying the art of observance. But then again, he had a great sense of humor, loved good jokes, and loved to laugh. He had a wonderful ability to relate a story, like his mother. Keith felt a strong responsibility to be on time. He made it a point to be on time on all occasions, and preferred when others were on time as well. Keith was generous with his time and means to help others.

As mother and siblings of Keith, we would like to express our deepest gratitude to his boss at USPS, Patti Owens, who was not only a boss, but a dear friend. Patti was a huge support to Keith, especially these last few years as he cared for his parents and his own health declined. Also, thank you to his other co-workers at USPS. We would also like to express a big thank you to his beloved friend, Christie Washburn. Keith loved you! You were a beautiful light in his life.

Keith is preceded in death by his father, Glade.

He is survived by his beloved mother Betty (94), his brothers, Kris (Trisha) and Kenneth (Ronnetta), and his sisters, Kathy Riches (Scott), Karil Sweetwood (David), and Kendra Daley (Scott), 10 nieces and nephews, and 7 great-nieces and nephews.

A Celebration of Life Service for Keith will be held on Monday, March 10, 2025, at 4 pm at McDougal Funeral Home, 4330 South Redwood Road, Taylorsville, Utah.

Those wishing to livestream the service may do so at the following link: https://vimeo.com/event/4975330

A graveside service will be held on Tuesday, March 11, 2025, at Payson Cemetery at 12:00 pm, noon.