ForeverMissed
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Please join us in celebrating the life and memory of Keith Mocklin.

We would be honored if you would share your memories and thoughts in the Tributes section and we would love it if you would share your photos or videos in the Gallery section. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, we will not be having an in-person Celebration of Life but this site provides a place for Keith's family and friends to share memories and stories. We will keep the site forever.

If you are interested, we have created several videos to act as a way to eulogize Keith. Please go to the Gallery and click on Videos
Keith Leo Mocklin of Waveland, Mississippi, passed away on July 12th, 2020, at the age of 68.  After a two month bout with a rare form of cancer (Neuroendocrine Carcinoma), Keith died at his home surrounded by people who loved him. 
Keith was born January 19, 1952 in New Orleans, Louisiana.  Keith was the youngest of three children born to Irma May Carver and James V. Mocklin.  He graduated from Saint Stanislaus Catholic High School in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.  Keith was athletic and played both football and basketball at St. Stanislaus.  After relocating to Portland, Oregon in 1975, Keith went on to receive a certificate in small engine repair from Portland Community College.

After working for several years as a Volkswagen mechanic, Keith took a job as a machine operator at Pacific Hoe Saw and Knife Company in Portland.  Pacific Hoe was a leading American manufacturer of cutting tools for the wood products industry.  Keith played on and helped manage the company's softball team, and would go on to work as the Production Manager in the Carbide Department. 
Keith relocated back to the Mississippi Gulf Coast in the late 1990s, after 15 years at Pacific Hoe. He worked for nearly 20 years at Smith and Smith Aircraft in Long Beach as a CNC Machinist making small aircraft parts.  He loved the low stress and friendly working environment at Smith and Smith Aircraft. 
Keith married Mary Ellen Dahn in 1974, and they had two children, Melissa and Michael.  The couple divorced in 1987 but remained close friends and co-parents until his untimely death.  Keith was a wonderful father who was proud of his family and was steadfast in his unwavering support of his children. 
Keith loved living in the small town of Waveland on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. He lived in the city of Portland, Oregon for many years, but the bayous of Mississippi always called to him. Though his home was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, he was committed to rebuilding and continuing his quiet coastal life. After he retired in 2017, he spent his days taking walks to admire the sandy beaches and beautiful bay. 
Keith was a huge sports fan. When he wasn't attending sporting events or coaching his children as they were growing, he was watching sports on TV.  His favorite sports teams were the New Orleans Saints, LSU Tigers and Portland Trailblazers.  Keith's love of music was evident in his vast record collection (before much of it was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina), and he attended multiple concerts, Jazz, and Blues Fests throughout his adult life.  Keith enjoyed fishing both the rivers of Oregon as well as in the Bay of Saint Louis in Mississippi.  One of the delights of Keith's life was being a grandfather. He relished the time he spent with his grandchildren.  
Throughout much of his life, Keith spent his vacation time flying to visit his family and friends. In 2017, he took an epic 14-day cruise through the Panama Canal with his life-long friends.
Keith is survived by his ex-wife, Mary; his daughter Melissa Mocklin-Dwiggins and son-in-law Scott; and his son Michael Mocklin and daughter-in-law Wendy; as well as his 5 beloved grandchildren:  Jude, Jonah, Maya, Julia and Sawyer. 
He was preceded in death by his parents; James V. Mocklin, Irma May Mocklin and his siblings Jamie Scallon and James "Jim" Mocklin.
July 22, 2020
July 22, 2020
To my dear, Mary, Melissa, and Michael,

Please know my heart and prayers were with you all every moment. Although I never got the pleasure of meeting your dear father, I feel I knew him from your love of him and the stories shared. 

Melissa and Michael you are to be honored and revered. Your love, care and compassion show in everything you do. Thank you for honoring your dear father! Thank you also for taking care of my best friend, your dear Mom.

Mary, there are not enough words my Yin! You humble me every day through your example of how to live and love.

May God Bless and keep you all during this trying time.

July 16, 2020
July 16, 2020
To the Mocklin Family:

It's never easy to lose someone you love. Keith was a wonderful man, who cared and loved his family. He will be missed to those that he left behind.

You may have lost a loving family member, but you gain an angel above to watch you over you! I am very sure he is proud of each and every one of you!

Remember that your never alone! You have the love and support of the community and friends of the family!

Cassandra Estes
(Cassie Liz's Oldest/ Julia Sister)
July 16, 2020
July 16, 2020
Keith will be missed terribly. He was my boss and very close friend for many years. We partied hardy and loved our time together,I will never forget our trip to kaneeta all girls and Keith was the only guy, he was in heaven lol. We all got rained out but hung out in our tents. Love that man dearly.

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Recent Tributes
July 22, 2020
July 22, 2020
To my dear, Mary, Melissa, and Michael,

Please know my heart and prayers were with you all every moment. Although I never got the pleasure of meeting your dear father, I feel I knew him from your love of him and the stories shared. 

Melissa and Michael you are to be honored and revered. Your love, care and compassion show in everything you do. Thank you for honoring your dear father! Thank you also for taking care of my best friend, your dear Mom.

Mary, there are not enough words my Yin! You humble me every day through your example of how to live and love.

May God Bless and keep you all during this trying time.

July 16, 2020
July 16, 2020
To the Mocklin Family:

It's never easy to lose someone you love. Keith was a wonderful man, who cared and loved his family. He will be missed to those that he left behind.

You may have lost a loving family member, but you gain an angel above to watch you over you! I am very sure he is proud of each and every one of you!

Remember that your never alone! You have the love and support of the community and friends of the family!

Cassandra Estes
(Cassie Liz's Oldest/ Julia Sister)
July 16, 2020
July 16, 2020
Keith will be missed terribly. He was my boss and very close friend for many years. We partied hardy and loved our time together,I will never forget our trip to kaneeta all girls and Keith was the only guy, he was in heaven lol. We all got rained out but hung out in our tents. Love that man dearly.
Recent stories

The Quiet Outlaw

January 19, 2021
I would say Keith came into our family when he and Mary started dating and later married.........but that's not so.........He was actually considered family long before he married into it.  He lived in the same neighborhood where we all kind of congregated and my brothers just kinda grew on him as he did on them.  He and Mary moved to Portland right after getting married so I did not see much of him or my sister for quite a while (until one of us could afford the flight to go see the other one). I always knew him to be polite and quiet and that my brothers probably hated to see him leave just as much I hated to see my sister leave.  But they were on a new life together. Keith eventually made it back home some years after he and Mary divorced I think, and I would always include him in family get togethers.....because to me, well, he was still family.  There were many good years of family get togethers and such and he came when he could. Sometimes my sister would be here and it was like old times.  We do like our boiled seafood and fried fish (and cold beer) so that would warrant a get together of family and friends.  Well.....when I would introduce Keith it was awkward to say he was my ex brother-in-law because he really wasn't.  So one day at a gathering I was searching for the words to introduce him to someone and I didn't like "ex brother-in-law" so I dubbed him the Outlaw. Well he just kind of chuckled under his breath and I knew he was at least ok with that.  He technically wasn't an in-law anymore but he was still thought about and loved.  So for quite a few years I introduced him as the Outlaw to friends.  I never figured he minded that much and one day he surprised me. He stepped forward and introduced himself as the Outlaw! So that's the way he let me know he was certainly good with it.  In fact he seemed like it made him special (which he was). So when I hear the word "outlaw" my pet name for Keith comes to mind. He was indeed kinda quiet to be sure but he loved life and his kids and grandkids immensely and we loved him as much as he loved us. 

Dad's Beard

July 25, 2020
When I was growing up, people constantly told me I looked like my dad. Imagine being a chubby pre-pubescent 11 year-old who essentially heard, "you look just like a man with a beard covering most of his face." My Dad always had a beard. He shaved it once for a job, but that job also required he wear a tie. He lasted 3 days. 
We took an unusual road trip in 1983 when I was 7. I still have no idea what possessed my parents to drive to Redding California for a "vacation." I remember walking by the shaving cream, razors and after shave in the motel bathroom and thinking nothing of it. My dad came out of the bathroom after what seemed like 2 hours without his signature beard. Woah!  Even at age 7, I recall thinking he looked 10 years younger, though he was actually only 31 at the time.  Mom hated it, and the shaving stuff went in the trash at the motel.
In 1991, my Dad took Michael and I to Mississippi to visit the Grandparents.  We begged Dad to shave his beard. He complied but he didn't shave his mustache. Instead of looking 10 years younger, like I was hoping, he looked more like Eli Wallach from The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. One evening we were on the porch of my Grandma Mocklin's house, and Dad put on her gardening hat and said something in a terrible accent. We died laughing because with his dark hair and mustache, he really did look like he just stepped out of one of the westerns he loved. 
I can only recall Dad shaving his entire face those two times. The beard changed forms from longish like Santa, to goatee, to trimmed very close, but it never left his face again. Since becoming an adult, I don't mind folks telling me that I look like my dad, even though I can't grow a beard. :) 
July 16, 2020
Maya created this picture card for her Grandpa shortly before his passing. Though he never got to see it, we know he would have treasured it.

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