ROBERT KEITH KERBY
February 2, 1937 –
October 24, 2025
Robert Keith Kerby, age 88 of Glenwood, Missouri passed away peacefully on October 24, 2025, at Cox Hospital in Lamar, Missouri, surrounded by loved ones. He was a teacher, farmer, scholar, historian, world traveler, a beloved father, brother, uncle, a Grampy, a Papa, and a friend.
Born on February 2, 1937, in a rented farmhouse northwest of Glenwood, Missouri, Keith was the son of Benjamin Lincoln Kerby and Eileen Kerby Graves. He had an older brother who died in infancy, and his sister Nancy Janette Kerby Ayer was a loving sister until the end of his life.
Keith married his first and only love Nancy Smyser Kerby on June 16, 1957, and to this union three children were born- -Lance, Travis, and Cynthia. Keith and Nancy were married almost 68 years and he lived only 233 days on earth without his Nancy.
Keith taught courses in the social studies for middle schoolers and high school students in Elsberry, Missouri; Downing, Missouri; Donnellson, Iowa; Redfield, Iowa, finishing his career in Brownsville, Texas. He taught his own children in middle school and high school at Redfield. Everywhere he taught he loved his students. He did not judge and he was not harsh; he was a great teacher and communicator. Through storytelling and wit he communicated life lessons and advice.
Keith was proud that his wife and himself had traveled to six of the seven continents. Seven years ago, at the age of 81, they traveled to their sixth continent, Africa. The closest he got to the seventh, Antarctica was Tierra del Fuego in Argentina. His wife, Nancy, suggested he go on a boat excursion so he could say he had travelled to all seven, but Keith would never leave her behind.
Keith read only non-fiction. He spent time reading about the places he strived to visit. There was always an atlas handy at his house; he was always planning their next adventure. Travel was important to him not only to see new places, but to experience the people and culture, to learn the history of the places. He enjoyed sharing his experiences and knowledge of their travels to friends and family whether it was their train trip across Russia or their stay in a Mongolian yurt. His trips were never typical. Nancy always wanted to go to England, but Keith would just say, “we will go there when we get old.” A friend of the family and former student was warned not to travel to Brazil, and Keith told him “If you listen to people, you will never go anywhere.”
Groundhog Day was a fitting celebration for Keith’s birthday, since he was always anticipating the end of winter, the beginning of spring, and the ability to get outside to enjoy his farms. He enjoyed working the land around Glenwood Missouri. He raised cattle, baled hay, and fixed a lot of fences over the years. As a young father, he told his children to get out of Schuyler County and see the world. The home Keith was born in was in direct view of the farmhouse where he raised his family.
Even though he spent many years working in Iowa and Texas, traveling the world, and wintering in different parts of the country to be near his children, all roads led back to his beloved Schuyler County.
Our loving patriarch Keith was a generous and kind soul. He spent many hours searching creek beds for Indian arrowheads with his grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He taught them how to drive his Gator and his truck. When his first grandson, Schuyler, was born he took the time to write him a letter during the first year of his life, and gave it to him on his 18th birthday. In that letter, he shared the following things he felt were important in his life
1. Always make room for one more. Never exclude a friend or family member. Our family motto has always been “the more, the merrier,” and he lived that every day. He truly made a person feel wanted–like he had been waiting for them.
2. Value Education and curiosity. His philanthropy focused on education. He supported schools and students in South Texas and Haiti, as well as his own children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. He wanted us to stay curious and continue to explore.
3. Preserve your story. He cared deeply about documenting his life and his community’s history. He knew the history of Schuyler County. He was a gifted writer, a published author on the history of Glenwood, whose research photos are archived at the State Historical Society of Missouri under the collection title, Keith Kerby Photograph Collection. He was a regular contributor to the local community newspaper. He started writing a journal in his young adulthood and continued until his Alzheimer’s stopped his writing a few years ago. He left volumes of journals filled with beautiful stories and reflections that capture who he was and what he loved. Document your life in words and photos.
Keith’s legacy lives on through his kindness, his words, and the light he brought to everyone he came in contact with.
Preceded in death were Keith’s parents, his wife Nancy, and his eldest son Lance Kerby and many loved brothers in law’s, aunts, uncles, cousins and friends.
He leaves behind children, Travis Lincoln Kerby (wife Deedra) and Cynthia Kerby Mattingly (husband Mitchell); his grandchildren, Savannah Kerby Williams (husband Nicholas), Schuyler Lincoln Kerby (husband Alex), Chariton Kale Kerby (partner Kawon), Austin Taylor Marks (wife Leah), and Thomas Baker Mattingly; his great-grandchildren, Willa Ann Griffin, Jonah Hugh Griffin, Wesley Kaye Griffin, and Henry Keith Marks. He is also survived by his sister Nancy Janette Kerby Ayer (Dwayne), sister in laws: Edith May Glenn, Esther Ray Cypert, Virginia Lee Melvin, and Marie Smyser, brother-in-law, Glen Manley Smyser (wife Mary), and lifetime friend, Charles Ridge, along with many extended family members, friends, and loved ones.
A Celebration of Life service will be held on Saturday, December 13, 2025 at 11:00 a.m. at the Norman Funeral Home in Lancaster, Missouri with Brad Drummond officiating. Visitation will be held one hour prior to the Celebration of Life service from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. at the Norman Funeral Home in Lancaster, Missouri. Memorials have been established for the Glenwood Cemetery in Glenwood, Missouri. Online condolences may be expressed to the family by logging on to normanfh.com. Burial will be in the Glenwood Cemetery in Glenwood, Missouri. Arrangements are under the direction of the Norman Funeral Home of Lancaster, Missouri.
