Joseph Patrick Keogh III, age 82, passed away on May 8, 2025, at St. Luke’s Hospital in New Bedford, Mass., after a brief illness.
Joe was born in Youngstown, Ohio, in 1942 to Joseph Patrick Keogh (Sr.) and Mary Louise Bierkamp. In 1962, he enlisted in the United States Coast Guard and there began his love affair with the sea. After service, he settled in Woods Hole, where he met and married Ellen Christian. Together they had two sons, Sean and Timothy, whom they raised in Marion. Until his retirement from Edy & Duff boat yard, Joe helped build many of the boats dotting Buzzards Bay. Joe was an active member of the town and served on multiple committees, including the Marion Open Space Committee, the Marine Resource Committee, and the Circulation Committee all of which were responsible for giving residents easier access to natural resources.
Joe was a man of many passions: sailing, Tai Chi, genealogy and scale collecting, to name just a few. Joe loved nature and spent his retirement organizing and leading local kayaking and hiking expeditions and keeping tabs on the ospreys of Marion.
He was known for the indomitable spirit that lay behind his laconic demeanor. When he was forbidden from cycling for health reasons, he took up a recumbent bike without a second thought. When his knees made it hard to skipper a regular sailboat, he built himself a trimaran he could sail seated.
He is survived by his sons, Sean and his wife Nicole and Tim and his wife Teah; his grandchildren, Olive, Martin and Cecelia; his sister, Kathy; and his good friend and partner, Deb Giokas.
Services will be held on Thursday, May 15th at 4PM at St. Gabriel’s Church, 124 Front St., Marion. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the Sippican Lands Trust, an organization working to protect the Ospreys that Joe loved so dearly.
Arrangements are with the Saunders-Dwyer Mattapoisett Home for Funerals, 50 County Rd. (Rt. 6), Mattapoisett. For online guestbook, visit www.saundersdwyer.com.
