03/21/2015
On the second day of spring, March 21, 2015, Freda Marilyn (Godfrey) Keller, 85 of Indianola, passed away surrounded by her family (four sons and their spouses).
Freda was born July 9, 1929 in Pleasantville, IA, the daughter of Frederick Thaddeus and Florence Ethel (Billingsly) Godfrey.
In 1947 she graduated from Knoxville High School and on June 8, of that year, she was united in marriage to Max Dean Keller, who survives.
Freda was a homemaker and family matriarch. For many years, she served as an Avon representative. She enjoyed children, clothes, cooking, and collecting.
As a child she was drawn to the glamour of movie stars and their lives, the academy awards, and celebrity magazines.
During high school she was an athlete. She was an excellent swimmer and runner. Often she reminded her four boys that “she ran barefoot on a cinder track.”
Like many girls in post-Depression Knoxville, she worked as a waitress for the Raola Restaurant. During high school, she was taken under the wing of Dr. Dwight Mater and contemplated a career in nursing but was swept off her feet by her spouse of 67 years.
For many years, she was interested in computers and prided herself in her computer abilities.
She is survived by her husband, Max Keller; son Don of West Des Moines and his children: Michelle (Sean) Martin and their children Kyle, Jarrod and Emma Martin, Christy (David) Reis and their children Hudson and Tripp Reis, Brent (Jamie) Keller and their children Victoria and Liam Keller and Don’s youngest daughter Ashley Keller; son Ron (Sue) Keller of Indianola and their children Kara (Jonathan) Vehar and children Hannah and Jonah Vehar, Joseph (Paige) Keller and their daughter Lucy Keller; son Dave (Kim) Keller and their children, Ann Keller, Emily (Seth) Lampman and daughter Elliot Lampman, Meghan (Pete Crall) Keller, John (Kendra Core) Keller; son Dennis (Paula) Keller and their children Steve (Amy) Keller and their children, Anna, Kate, Grace, Jack and Max Keller, Chad (Christine) Keller and son Casen Keller, Stacy (Josh) McCurnin and their children Liam and Lola McCurnin; her sisters, Betty Miller and Beverly Mooney and brother, Ted (Patty) Godfrey. She was preceded in death by her parents and an infant son.
Funeral services will be held at 1 p.m., Wednesday, March 25, 2015 at Overton Funeral Home in Indianola with burial following in the Ackworth Cemetery.
Visitation will be held 4 to 8 p.m., Tuesday, March 24 at Overton Funeral Home with family present from 6 to 8 p.m. Memorials may be given in her name to the Warren County Historical Society or Wingspan a non-profit residential group home for adults with developmental disabilities in St. Paul, MN.