Ellen Christian Keogh, 73, of Marion passed away on Tuesday, March 6 of a cardiac event in Coral Bay, St. John, USVI.

Ellen was born in Falmouth, MA in 1945. She married her husband, Joseph Patrick Keogh, in 1974 and moved to Marion, MA in 1979 where they raised two boys, Sean and Timothy.

Ellen graduated from Mass General School of Nursing and taught nursing at Children’s Hospital in Boston. She went on to get her Masters Degree in Nursing at University of Colorado in Denver. She joined UMass Dartmouth’s College of Nursing faculty in 1975, teaching a course on nursing care of children and provided clinical supervision in pediatrics at St. Luke’s. She served as department chair before being appointed director of the University’s Academic Advising Center. She was awarded the Yvonne Sandstone Award for her commitment to the success and retention of first year students.

In her retirement, Ellen continued to support the community, volunteering at the SMILE program, the Memory Cafe, Marion Visiting Nurses Association and Marion’s Council on Aging.

She also served as unofficial health care proxy for her family and many friends.

In her free time, Ellen also kept busy, traveling and sailing with her husband and playing tennis with friends. She had recently taken up pickleball - a game she boldly declared to be “the sport of the future.” She enjoyed gardening both at home and in her children’s yards.

In her quieter moments, Ellen loved watching the hummingbirds in her garden, reading her book club books, and texting with her granddaughter.

Ellen is survived by her husband, Joseph; her children, Sean and Tim; her grandchildren, Cecelia, Martin, and Olive; her brother, John Christian; her beloved cousins; and the countless friends that she considered family.

Services will be held at St. Gabriel’s Church in Marion, MA at 2:00 pm on Friday, March 16. Light refreshments will be served in the parish hall following. In lieu of flowers, it was Ellen’s wish that donations be sent to the Woods Hole Library.