Keith A. Rouse

Keith Alexander Rouse, age 56, passed away at home on February 26th surrounded by his family and friends.

Born on 06/17/1966 to his father Charles R Rouse and Linda S Rouse in Las Vegas, NV, Keith had the dream childhood. He grew up with his little sister Bonnie (Bones) Rouse and they were the typical big brother/ little sister pairing. He grew up in a neighborhood where he was able to play with friends, be a newspaper boy, and a boy scout. Throughout his childhood and teen years, Keith was very athletic. Two of his passions were running and baseball. He would play baseball with his neighborhood friends and team in the summer and then be in track and field during the school year. Keith was passionate about his favorite baseball team, the Boston Red Sox and would watch them as often as he could. He started his first job as a paper boy at the age of 11. He had fond memories of his experience delivering the papers to his neighborhood and making some cash. His favorite thing to buy with this money was baseball cards and candy from the local 7/11. Keith earned his Eagle scout ranking at the age of 16. He carried the teachings and morals of his boy scout years throughout his life and upheld the boy scout motto. Being an eagle scout was one of his proudest achievements in life.

After high school, Keith went to the community college of Nevada to earn his fire science degree. His dream was to be a firefighter. He accomplished this degree at the age of 30. While studying for this degree, Keith worked at UPS as a loyal employee. He would go to work even if it was 100 degree weather and there was no AC in the vans. He wore those brown shorts with pride.

In his early 20s Keith explored his other passion in life, music, by being in various rock bands with his friends. He played the bass guitar and did vocals. Some of his favorite bands included Rush, Iron Maiden, Megadeath, and Dream Theater, just to name a few. He also learned to enjoy country, jazz, and folk music throughout his life as well. Also, during this time, with Keith's love of running, he participated in over 100 marathons, triathlons, and he even completed a full Iron Man.

At the age of 25, Keith met his wife, Pamela, at the UNLV swimming pool in the master swim club. After only 6 months of dating, Keith knew that Pam was the woman for him and he asked her to marry him. On June 26, 1993, they got married and Keith enjoyed the rest of his life with Pam. In marrying Pam, Keith was blessed with two step children, Casey (13) and Tristan Regan (11). Although their father was still in their life, Keith stepped up to the plate and was a father figure for both children. He took them to many concerts and sporting events. Keith never treated them like they weren't his own. On March 22, 1996, Keith and Pam had their first child together, Madison A Rouse. On August 25, 1998 they welcomed their second child together, Amber N Rouse.

Keith faced many injuries in the upcoming years. From the span of 1999-2008 Keith had 17 surgeries to correct a back injury, hip injury, and knee injury. For this span of time Keith stayed at home with his two young daughters and taught them the ways of life. From history lessons, music education, to shooting bows and arrows, Keith wanted to teach his children as much as possible while he had the time to be with them. After his last surgery in 2008, Keith was finally released to go back to work. He decided with his health back in check, he was ready for a new experience.

In 2009, Keith and his family moved to Casper, WY so that Keith could train to become an electrician. In 2014 Keith became a journeyman and was excited for the future. Unfortunately, fate had other plans for Keith. In September of 2014 Keith hurt his back again and could not continue working. Understanding that his body could no longer keep up with manual labor, he was faced again with a new opportunity. Instead of waiting at home to be fixed, he decided to go to college for a new degree. Keith decided to pursue his other passion in life, history. He always dreamed of one day being a history professor at a college. He attended Casper College from 2016-2018 for his associate degree and then continued with University of Wyoming from 2018-2020 to get his bachelor's degree. While at college he also worked for the Casper College History Center as an archivist.

Keith was looking into his master's degree when in April of 2021, he suffered a minor stroke. It affected his ability to speak and so he was unable to pursue his dream of being a professor. His new dream was to become a history archivist. Unfortunately, this dream would not come true either because in July of 2022 he was diagnosed with Bulbar ALS. Keith and his family knew that time was limited, so they knew they had to make at least one dream come true. In October of 2022, Keith and his family went to Oahu, Hawaii to visit the Pearl Harbor Museum and memorial. As a history nerd with a love of studying World War 2, Pearl Harbor was his number one travel destination. He had gone to Normandy Beach in France back in 2011, so that bucket list item had already been crossed off. Keith's son Casey, his wife Tiana, and their son LJ live in Hawaii and so it was also his last opportunity to visit with them.

Keith became a grandfather in 2018 to his grandson LJ Akana-Regan. LJ really loved his Papa Keith. The Hawaii trip was a beautiful and memorable trip for all. Keith was able to touch the ocean one last time, to have his last full meal with his loved ones and hug his grandson one more time.

Keith faced many issues with his health throughout his life, but he never let it stop him. He was always finding ways to better himself and show that these difficulties would never stop him. As Keith grew older, he realized that bettering himself did not only mean becoming more knowledgeable, he realized he also wanted to give back to his community and help those in need. In the last 5 years of his life, he was part of the Sandwich Ministry at First Christian Church of Casper. He also went on a mission trip to Puerto Rico in 2019. He was passionate about helping the less fortunate and he found his way of giving back through the sandwich ministry. He saw first-hand how much the sandwich ministry helped others and he wanted to do so much more.

Keith was a fighter until the very end. He had never known anything but fighting due to all his health issues. ALS is a nasty disease that cannot be beat. Although Keith was healthy and strong in so many ways, he passed away on February 26, 2023 due to ALS complications. He was able to come back to his home on hospice and passed away with several family members and lifelong friends present. Keith is no longer in pain. He is now free to run again as much as he wants.

He will be dearly missed by all who knew him.

Keith is succeeded by his father Charlie, step-mother Mollie, sister Bonnie, wife Pam, 4 children (Casey, Tristan, Madison, and Amber), and grandson LJ.

Keith's family will be having a celebration of life at First Christian Church of Casper on March 31, 2023 @ 6pm. All who wish to come and celebrate Keith's life are welcome.

There will be a celebration of life in Las Vegas, NV in late June. TBD.

Arrangements are under the direction of Newcomer Casper. To leave the family a special message, please select the "Share Memories" option.