Obituary for Chester “Chet” M McKeen FORT WORTH – US Army Major General Chester “Chet” M McKeen, Jr. finished his work on earth on Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2018, and died. Memorial Service: 2 p.m. Tuesday, Oct.
2, 2018, at University Christian Church, 2720 S. University Dr., Fort Worth. Interment: 11 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 2, 2018, at Greenwood Memorial Park, with Military Honors and Masonic Rites, 3100 White Settlement Road at University Drive, Fort Worth.
Visitation: 4 to 6 p.m. Monday, Oct. 1,2018, at Greenwood. Memorials: Memory may be honored with donations to The Fort Worth Scottish Rite Scholarship Foundation, P.O. Box 1320, Fort Worth, Texas 76101 or Hillsdale College, 33 College St., Hillsdale, Michigan 49242.
Chet was born in Shelby, Ohio in 1923, to Chester M. and Nettie A. McKeen. The son of a railroad man, he spent his early years in cities along the B & O Railroad between New York and Chicago. He graduated from high school in Oak Park, Illinois in 1941.
He was active in the Boy Scouts and youth organizations in his church. He began his college education at the University of Illinois in Champaign Urbana. It was interrupted when he enlisted in the Army in October 1942.
In June 1943, he completed OCS and received a commission as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Ordnance Corps. Chet was assigned to the 362nd Anti-aircraft Ordnance Company and served with that company throughout WWII. The Company was stationed in various US locations before being deployed to the Pacific islands, the last on Iwo Jima in support of the Marines.
His career was marked with innovations. In 1949, at Frankford Arsena1 he installed the first production control system for a job shop using IBM machines. In Europe, he applied statistical methods and IBM machine technology to control the 140,000 items in the Ordnance supply system.
In 1972, he initiated the redesign of the Army’s trucks to increase greatly their mobility off road in sandy and hilly terrain. In 1974, on a special project for the Secretary of The Army, he supervised an increase in the production rate of tanks from 15 to 100/month, while at the same time rebuilding older M60 tanks and transforming M48Al tanks into M60s. He also guided the establishment of a program to modernize 34 WWII ammunition plants.
Working at night, he earned a Bachelors degree from the University of Maryland. He also received a MBA from Babson College and graduated from the Army Command and General Staff College and the Industrial College of the Armed Forces. Chet served two tours in Europe and two in Vietnam.
From 1972 until 1975 he was in charge of all material procurement for the Army. His final military assignment was that of Commanding General of the Tank Automotive Command in Warren, Michigan, where he supervised the development of the M-l tank. His awards include the Distinguished Service Medal, the Legion of Merit with three Oak Leaf Clusters, the Army Commendation Medal with one Oak Leaf Cluster, and three Presidential Unit Citations.
In 2002, he was inducted into the US Army Ordnance Hall of Fame. Retiring from the Army in 1977, the General went to work in Iran with Bell Helicopter. When the 1979 Revolution ended that project, he returned to serve as Bell’s Vice President of Materiel until retirement in 1989.
Following that he founded and managed two corporations. He was active in his religion, serving as an Elder in the University Christian Church. He also worked in charitable organizations including: Cancer Care Services, The Salvation Army and The Executive Service Corps, which he chaired.
He enjoyed traveling with his wife and grandchildren to the National Parks and historical sites in their RV. He and Sally were fond of cruising and visited most of the interesting destinations around the world. He was a member of the Sigma Pi fraternity, Association of the US Army, a 33rd Degree Mason, a Shriner, and a Sojoumer.
He was also a Paul Harris Fellow in the Fort Worth Rotary Club. Chet was preceded in death by his first wife, Virginia Pierce; eldest son, David R.; and sister, Ollie Belle Smink. Survivors: Beloved wife, Sally Werst McKeen; daughter, Karin G. Frazier (Mike); son, Thomas K. McKeen, daughter-in-law, Marcia McKeen; stepson, Stephen Werst (Lisa); sister, Mary Davidson (Don); brother, Robert McKeen (Debbie); brother-in-law, H. Allan Werst (Helen); nine grandchildren; six great-grandchildren; and one great-great-grandchild.
To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Chester “Chet” M McKeen please visit our Sympathy Store. Upcoming Events Visitation , OCT 1. 04:00 PM – 06:00 PM GREENWOOD CHAPEL Greenwood Funeral Homes and Cremation, Cemetery, Mausoleum, Florist 3100 White Settlement Road Fort Worth, TX, US, 76107 Order Flowers for the Visitation Guaranteed delivery before Chester’s Visitation begins.
Graveside , OCT 2. 11:00 AM Greenwood Memorial Park 3100 White Settlement Road Fort Worth, TX, US, 76107 Order Flowers for the Graveside Guaranteed delivery before Chester’s Graveside begins. Memorial , OCT 2.
02:00 PM University Christian Church 2720 S University Drive Fort Worth, TX, US, 76109 Order Flowers for the Memorial Guaranteed delivery before Chester’s Memorial begins.
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