Keith Roger Pierce entered this world Sept. 9, 2004 as stubborn, tough and handsome as he was the day he left. Born to Mandy (Drake), who grew up in Homer, and Preston Pierce Sr. and older brother Preston Jr., Keith challenged and entertained his family from the very second he took his first breath.
“Keithy” and “Junior” welcomed their third musketeer, Ethan, a few years later, completing the Pierce gang. Together they created their own mini-army and played football, rode their carts downhill at full speed and later all three boys tore it up riding around the water tower on their dirtbikes. The boys were inseparable and competitive, always trying to beat the other at a race or game.
Keith also loved his video games and was perfecting his World of Minecraft at the time of his hospitalization. He wrestled and played flag football; a recent photo from his last game shows him running full speed with the football tucked under his arm.
Keith was being treated for swelling and pain in his leg, which was later attributed to a spider bite. An infection had taken over his small body, making it impossible for him to recover. He was welcomed into and ushered out of this world at St. Vincent’s Hospital in Billings, Mont., just 10 years, 1 month and 4 days apart.
“One of the last things he said to us was ‘I am ready to go,’ and so we let him go home to be with his Lord Almighty and his grandparents and great-grandparents,” said a statement from his family.
Keith is survived by his parents, Mandy and Preston Pierce Sr.; his brothers, Preston Jr. and Ethan; his maternal grandfather, Roger Drake; maternal great-grandmother, Carol Clark; paternal grandparents, Keith and Lisa Pierce; paternal great-grandparents, Lemoine and Yavonne Wick; Aunt Amber (Kenneth) Butler; uncles Devon Drake and Tylor Pierce; cousin Rylee Drake; as well as many close extended family and friends.
In heaven, Keith will join his grandmothers, Dawn Drake and Tammy Wick; his great-grandfathers, James Clark and Keith Pierce; and his cousin, Courtney Clark.
K&L Mortuaries in Three Forks hosted a visitation from Oct.16 through Oct. 19. A celebration of Keith’s short but incredible life was Monday, Oct. 20, at the Three Forks High School gymnasium. Internment followed at Fairview cemetery, Three Forks, and a reception was at the school cafeteria afterward. Because Keith loved Three Forks Wolves athletics, the family requested that all attending his funeral wear red, black and white.
Memorials and donations to the family may be made at any Manhattan Bank branch or at gofundme.org/piercefamily
