Gladys B. Keating

Gladys B. Keating, mother of 5 and former 22-year member of the Virginia House of Delegates representing the 43rd House District of Fairfax County, passed away peacefully at New Hanover Regional Medical Center in Wilmington, NC on August 19, 2014 surrounded by family. She died of congestive heart failure. She was the beloved wife of LTC (USA Ret) John A. Keating (deceased) and a former 45-year resident of Franconia, Virginia. She was an extraordinary individual with an unwavering devotion to both her family and her community. She was an outspoken champion of consumer rights and family law reform. As a 50-year breast cancer survivor, she was a leader on women's health issues. The daughter of Emma Baumbach, Irving Lenton and Harry Brown, Mrs. Keating was born on August 1, 1923 in the lower East Side of Manhattan, New York and graduated at the age of 16 from Andrew Jackson High School. She attended Queens College in New York as well as Wetherford College in Texas and George Mason University in Virginia. Her first career was at the Metropolitan Life Insurance in New York City where she served as a supervisor in the actuarial division. Upon her marriage in 1951, she served in the role of a military officer's wife, living in various locations including Colorado, Germany, Massachusetts, Texas and Virginia. Her family settled in Franconia, Virginia in 1961 and she became immersed in her community serving as the president of the Brookland/BushHill Civic Association, Commissioner of FYA girls softball league, President of the Edison High School PTA, member of the Fairfax County Library Board of Trustees, Fairfax County Democratic Committee, Order of Women Legislators, Washington-Dulles Task force, Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, Virginia Citizens Consumer Council and a lay reader at Olivet Episcopal Church. She was honored with the Human Rights Award by the Fairfax County Human Rights Commission and with the Woman of the Year Award by the Annandale Business and Professional Women's Club. Mrs. Keating was first elected to the Virginia House of Delegates in 1977 and served until 2000. She rose to be the most senior woman in the Virginia General Assembly and was re-elected 11 times. She guided the creation of a women's caucus which discussed legislative topics of importance to women and served as its leader. She was the first woman to be appointed to the Committee on Corporations, Insurance and Banking and later served as the co-chair. She was also the first woman to serve on the Militia and Police Committee and served as the chair. She was a member of the rules committee, the committee on counties cities and town, and served on the Virginia Military Advisory Council. She represented Virginia at the National Conference of State Legislatures. As an outspoken advocate for the consumer, she successfully fought the sale of customer lists by the telephone company, won enactment of a bill requiring the prominent display of product return policies in retail stores. A study she sponsored persuaded major grocery chains to improve the readability of shelf prices. As chair of the House Militia and Policy Committee, she worked diligently to maintain sufficient manpower and compensation levels for the Virginia State Police, championed tuition assistance for citizens serving in the Virginia National Guard and was a leading proponent of firearms safety. A law she guided to passage let judges require firearms safety instruction as a precondition to the granting of concealed weapons permits. Other legislation thwarted the use of fraudulently obtained driver's licenses to purchase firearms. Family law is a field in which she was especially active. She championed equitable distribution legislation, recognizing a wife's non-monetary contributions to a marriage. She sponsored bills that allowed courts to consider pensions, profit-sharing, and retirement and survivor benefits as marital property to be divided in the event of divorce. She likewise achieved passage of a measure empowering judges in divorce cases to require the retention of insurance policies benefiting minor children. She also gained adoption of legislation treating joint bank accounts as belonging equally to each spouse and worked to pass legislation enhancing the inheritance rights of a spouse whose partner dies without leaving a will. A leader on women's health issues, Mrs. Keating gained passage of a bill requiring increased efforts for the Department of Health to promote osteoporosis awareness and preventions. She was chief patron of legislation requiring Virginia insurance companies to provide coverage for mammography. She authored a resolution declaring breast cancer a public health emergency and calling for additional research. Her legislation eased statute of limitation restrictions on suits brought by women injured by defective breast implants. She was recognized by the Virginia Cancer Society for her leadership on these issues. A prolific reader, she could often be found with a book in her hand or visiting the local library exchanging one big bag of books for another. Her love of reading continued into her retirement years and it was one of the last activities that she continued to enjoy after a series of strokes in 2006. Mrs. Keating loved to travel and enjoyed many overseas trips. Eighteen years ago, she asked her 5 adult children and their families to start a tradition of family reunions at beach locations such as the Outerbanks of NC. These became treasured memories for her and all of her family members. In the later years, these trips were timed to celebrate her birthday and she was able to celebrate her 91st birthday with her family this month. She is survived by her sons John Keating (Elizabeth) of Wiesbaden, Germany, Lawrence Keating (Holly) of Charlotte, NC, Michael Keating (Kathy) of Centreville, daughters Maggie Jones (David) of Wilmington, NC and Eileen Carnaggio (Sam) of Clarksville, sisters Constance Goodzeit (Carl) of DeSoto, TX and Barbara Nauman (Herb) of St. Augustine, FL. She is also survived by 17 grandchildren and 13 great-grand children as well as nieces, nephews and cousins. Relatives and friends may call at Jefferson Funeral Chapel, 5755 Castlewellan Drive, Alexandria, VA on Friday, August 22, 2014 from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 PM. Funeral Service will be held at Olivet Episcopal Church, 6107 Franconia Road, Alexandria, VA on Saturday, August 23, 2014 at 3 PM, with visitation one hour prior in the old chapel. Interment Arlington National Cemetery on Tuesday, October 7, 2014 at 10 AM. Contributions in her memory may be made to the Franconia Museum http://www.fairy-lamp.com/Franconia/Franconia_Main.html.

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Gladys B. Keating

August 1, 1923 - August 19, 2014