Obituary of Keith C. Spaulding

Keith C. Spaulding, 84, of 4923 Route 430, Bemus Point, NY, and Englewood, FL passed away Thursday, August 28, 2014, in the Sarasota Memorial Hospital, Sarasota, FL. A Jamestown resident for most of his life, he was born October 10, 1929 in the Town of Aurora, NY, a son of the late Clayton Chadwick and Mildred Grover Spaulding. Before his retirement he was employed by American Locker Group and had formerly worked for Automatic Voting Machine Corporation for several years. Keith was very active in the Independent Order of the Vikings Lodge #65 and was a past Chief. Keith loved his family and his friends; he cherished every opportunity to be together. Especially Saturday lunches with friends, and weekly dinners with his "Lake Park" and "Florida" neighbors. He was instrumental in the start of the "Viking South" Picnic that has become an annual event in Englewood, FL, to bring together members of the Viking family wintering in the south and to raise funds for the Viking Lake Park playground. Keith was the hub at the center of extended family gatherings (Christmas, Thanksgiving, etc.). He was most often host and always the entertainer. He provided the atmosphere in which our family shared its closest holiday moments. He would share stories and jokes, and laugh the fullest at others stories. Interspersed with his humor and fun was a sincerity that made everyone he contacted feel important. He was warm and welcoming of family and friends and took a personal interest in everyone's lives. He kept a list (certainly not on a computer) of birthdays and other special dates. He never missed the opportunity to send greetings on those special occasions. Surviving are his wife the former Mary Jane Harrison, two sons, William (Lisa) Spaulding of Dover, PA, Kevin Spaulding of Dunkirk, NY, a daughter, Ann Wendland of Pittsford, NY, eight grandchildren, Sarah, Rachel and Emily Spaulding of Dover, PA, Chad Spaulding of Chicago, IL, Eric Spaulding of Saratoga Springs, NY, Megan Spaulding of Jamestown, Rebekka and Alek of Pittsford, NY, a brother Ralph Spaulding of Madison, WI, and a sister Eloise Slife of Oswego, NY. He is also survived by many nieces and nephews who loved Keith, and loved celebrating holidays and special events with Keith and his special "words of wisdom." Beside his parents he was preceded in death by two brothers Paul and Douglas Spaulding. A "celebration of Keith's life" will be held at 11:00 a.m. Friday in the Lind Funeral Home. Burial will be in the Lake View Cemetery. Friends will be received from 6 -8 p.m. Thursday in the funeral home and for one hour prior to the service on Friday in the funeral home. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to the Vikings Children's Playground fund or charity of your choice.