John Keenan for Redford Supervisor
Jack's Got Your Back!
PROTECT OUR FAMILIES AND EDUCATE OUR KIDS
MEET JOHN KEENAN
John Keenan is a life long resident of Redford Township. He grew up here, attending school at Fisher Elementary, Pierce Middle School, and graduating from Thurston High School. While growing up he played, RTJAA basketball and baseball and was awarded varsity letters from Thurston in both baseball and basketball. As a junior at Thurston High, he was awarded a medal for being the best 2nd baseman in the league. He was in the orchestra at Thurston playing the violin and was a very good student, enjoying chemistry and physics. Algebra was not his favorite subject.
While growing up he worked local jobs at McDonald’s, Smede and Son., cut lawns and was always gainfully employed by our local businessmen. He has many a colorful and wonderful stories to tell of those days particularly at Smede and Son where he enjoyed working with people of diverse backgrounds. His father taught him well and enjoyed diversity before everyone even knew what the word meant.
After graduating from Thurston, John enrolled (by the skin of his teeth) in the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor . His initial plan was to become a physician but after struggling with biology/zoology, he quickly changed to Economics and found it fascinating.
John studied and enjoyed all the courses he took at Michigan. He figured living in a capitalist society he should know a wee bit about money.
In college, he met the brilliant and beautiful Jan Austin whom he affectionately calls “Aussie” . She refers to him as “Beans”. He chased her for over a year and even while working as a factory worker for Ford Motor Company, he would drive all night to just spend
time with her while she was way up north at the summer horse camp. Jan was so
smart that while dating her she used words he never heard of and had to refer to a dictionary after each date. She made him ask for her hand from her father (a really scary moment) and believe it or not he said: yes.
John likes to say he was married right out of the cradle and has been married longer than most people have been alive --- which is quite frankly true.
Three children were born of the marriage and their attention shifted from each other to their three children: Chelsea, Jenna, and Conor. Today all are exceptional people. Jack often quips : “they are smarter than me and much better people” . Jan and John often visit them and spend time with them – all over the continental United States. Visits and family get togethers are almost always over the summer months.
Redford Township citizens include people from all walks of life, who work hard and help their neighbors whenever they can.
You deserve a wonderful, safe community that provides service for all ages and many different interests.
John Keenan will be working with the police to find creative and effective ways to stop speeders and control traffic to make our streets safe for everyone.
After college he enrolled in the University of Detroit Jesuit Law School where he learned both moral and black letter law. And although he did not much care for environmental law and other subjects, he was drawn to tax law and almost became a tax attorney with a CPA designation. He was much too gregarious for that type of work and again decided to shift gears based on his father’s advice to always own your own business and began planning on opening up a law business.
After law school he clerk in a number of jobs (he calls it his internship)…. These included among others Zeff & Zeff and Miller & Cohen and others. He even worked for the court administrator in the 14th Judicial District Court in Ann Arbor.
After the internship was complete Jan and John opened up their own firm together and it was immediately successful. Later, they expanded their practice into an extremely successful investment and management company. Having these and other businesses always kept them busy, but they always found time for family and could often be seen at their children’s football, basketball, ice hockey , and field hockey games and other events.
Always on the go and energetic, John does not believe in normal retirement and like other members of his family plans on working until at least age 90.
John believes in giving back , John and his wife have been involved in the community in myriad ways while living in Redford Township . His favorite memories are those at St. Valentine’s Church where he and his wife were very active and where John was the Men’s Club President. As John is quite religious he does not taut his charitable activities and explain to the world what they are – he knows his reward is not on earth but elsewhere. John reads a lot (usually a book or two a week) and enjoys all forms of music: (lately Irish folk music), poetry (particularly Dylan Thomas), and of course baseball and basketball.
John has often said: he has a “to do list” and the only item left on it is giving his time, talent, and some of his treasure back to his hometown which has given him so much.
If elected as your supervisor – the embedded people with all their interests will not change but the acceleration of the dream in making Redford Township the best place to work, live
and play will absolutely and positively occur. John does not believe in “bull shit” or gobbledygook political phrases which mean nothing: he believes in achievement and solving (not hiding or ignoring them) our most pressing community problems.
John Keenan respectfully requests your vote on November 5, 2024 on the non-partisan ballot.
