Dorothy Mansfield Keen

Mrs. Dorothy Keen, age 90, passed away on Thursday, March 5, 2020, in Ocean Springs, Mississippi. Dorothy was raised in Pascagoula. While working as a waitress at a diner in Pascagoula she met her future husband. She then followed him for the next 20 years where ever the Coast Guard sent him including Newfoundland, New Orleans, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Virginia with, eventually, six children in tow. They settled back on the Gulf Coast and were married for 61 years. She was preceded in death by her husband, Rayford Keen and daughter, Mryna Loy. Survivors include her sons, Ray Keen, Michael Keen and Allen Keen and daughters, Brenda Duncan and April Keen, many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Dorothy loved her Gulf Coast seafood and feeding the wild birds in her yard. Being a baby of the Great Depression she also loved a good bargain. If you ever had a garage sale over the last 50 years on the coast you likely saw Dorothy. She was the one asking if you’d take a quarter for something marked much higher. She passed along her appreciation of vintage items (before it was retro, shabby-chic or Boho) and her belief that something had value just because it was old (and likely of superior quality) to her children. More recently she perfected her skills at Bingo. She could play three bingo cards at once but usually had to play with two as the caller deemed three an unfair advantage. She took great pride in donating the prizes from her bingo winnings to Veterans. Dorothy was of the Catholic faith and she spent several years at St. Mary’s Orphanage in Natchez. Now she’s closer to the “beautiful sky” and rainbows which were never wasted on her. On Monday, March 9, there will be an 11am graveside service in Biloxi National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers donations can be made to St. Jude Research Children’s Hospital or a veterans organization of ones' choice. The Ocean Springs Chapel of Bradford O'Keefe Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.