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Keith Michael Neil Broadbent

Son, brother, uncle, gentle soul, lover of words and music. Born on Feb. 17, 1949, in Wallington, England; died on June 29, 2016, in Windsor, Ont., of complications from diabetes, aged 67.

When he was three years old, Keith's parents, Michael and Patricia, decided to leave England, spurred by the shortage of postwar jobs and the promise of a fresh start in Canada. His family, including 11-month-old Jane, went first to Brockville, Ont., but after a series of moves settled in Windsor, where his father worked as an engineer.

Keith started his schooling in Brockville, but it didn't make much sense to him. He was a dreamy, pensive boy, an old soul in a young child's frame, who filled his scribblers with pictures of cars and trains and ignored alphabet lessons. What was the point? He could already read by Grade 2 and perfect lettering was tiresome. Throughout his life he wrote beguiling, humorous letters to his relatives in a script that could best be described as "artistic."

It wasn't until he reached university that he found his intellectual niche. At the University of Windsor, he studied anthropology and graduated with honours.

Books were a mainstay throughout Keith's life, and he heartily supported public libraries. Whenever he met you, he would ask, "What are you reading?" He inspired his relatives to explore new and interesting authors. He loved Steven King, anything Canadian (Ian Ferguson, Margaret Atwood, Thomas King, André Alexis), J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series, and classics, from Shakespeare to Steinbeck. He was as equally proud of his full collection of fantasy author Sir Terry Pratchett as he was of his Dickens. In later years, he had to winnow his book collection to only those authors he particularly loved.

Music was another big part of Keith's life. He possessed an enviable collection the works of known and little-known musicians, including all the Beatles albums, some Mersey Beat, Motown and, of particular interest, Mississippi Delta blues featuring Arthur (Big Boy) Crudup and Robert Johnson. Keith was a "vinyl nerd" long before records had again become cool. While organizing his possessions after his passing, we were surprised to find many instruments, including several kinds of guitars and a variety of recorders, as well as a small personal recording system.

While he was at university, Keith held summer jobs at National Auto Radiator in Windsor, and continued on there all his working life." During a round of layoffs in 2000, he realized that if he took early retirement from his long-held position as a tool-and-die stamper, then two younger workers could keep their jobs. He felt he could live happily even with a slimmer pension. That was the kind of person Keith was: generous toward others, and requiring little for himself.

Keith was taken from us unexpectedly at 67. His health had been declining as a result of diabetes. He mentioned a while previously that his illness would probably be his undoing and his hope was that when it was his time, he would go quickly. It was just as he wished.

Jane Senda is Keith's sister.

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