Keith F. Baity

A Tribute to My Twin Brother Keith

Throughout his life, Keith was a caring individual, and his greatest treasure was his family.

• Keith was always so proud of his grandmother Mabel Robinson. When Keith was young, he jumped with joy to see her and loved to fish with her. Keith stayed at his grandmother's assisted living facility in Stamford, CT, so that he could keep her company and assist her in her travel and shopping until she passed away.
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• Keith had strong love for his mom Jean Plant, was always helping her when she needed to be driven somewhere; kept her company at dinner, played golf with her and joined her on winter vacations in Antiqua.
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• Keith loved his son Marco and was immensely proud of his academic achievements (PHD thesis in Physics) and he drew pleasure from his son's playful personality.
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• Keith loved and had tremendous respect for his father, a prominent lawyer and golf enthusiast. We enjoyed the Baity Family Golf events held at Vineyard Golf Club, Winged Foot Club and Blind Brook Golf Club.
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Keith loved the annual summer vacation at Lake George in the 1960s, 70's and 80's, golfing with our dad and me at the Sagamore, skiing and sailing on the lake, playing tennis, swimming across the Lake and evening campfires. Keith and I both pared the same hole at Ticonderoga Golf Club at age 6.

Keith loved the family traditions such as the annual Easter Egg Fight and the process of voting on animal names for family and relatives. Regarding the latter, Keith's animal nickname was named "Tiger." And he was a Tiger in everything he did. As a "Tiger," Keith never gave up, whether academics, sports, or helping me and other family at difficult times during our lives and was not judgmental.

In sports, he was an accomplished golfer, squash player and runner. Keith placed 5th for Princeton in the Ivy League Championships; playing on the varsity team at #1 ranked Princeton and was a top finisher in the New York corporate challenge race in late 1980s. Keith's golf teacher, famed Claude Harmon Senior, remarked on Keith's tremendous arm strength and smooth tempo. I recall out bike trip in 1976 to see the US bicentennial celebration in Philadelphia and our long bike trip from Rye, New York to Flint, Michigan to visit Baity family.

Keith excelled academically. As an undergraduate, he graduate Cum Laude from Princeton University (spending some time at Harvard University) and graduated from Columbia Business School and UCLA with grades placing him at the top of his classmates at those institutions. had exceptional analytical capabilities. As a consultant, Keith produced many high quality research papers on corporate finance and worked on corporate mergers and venture capital opportunities.

Keith's strong analytical capabilities enabled him to dissect the proper technique for golf and squash. He was intuitively brilliant and could see things that others could not.

Religiously, Keith was not part of a church, but he told me and others that God was an important part of his life. He said "remember, if people don't give forgiveness to you, God always forgives". He wrote a beautiful Keith religious poem just months before he passed.

Poem Name: Solar Reflection

By: Keith Flake Baity

Transcribed by Una Dapaixao

November 2024

When all is said and done.

When the moon replaces the sun.

Will you be here tomorrow?

Or will l endure unending sorrow?

Tears can be wiped away.

But they never disappear.

My eyes still glow until you are near.

You can wipe away my tears.

And forget about the years.

The sun will not come back tomorrow.

The past has too much sorrow.

The sun and moon moue together.

Life is just a reflection.

You can wipe away my tears.

You can forget all the tears.

As the sun sets across mountains and valleys, Windless waves calmly lap the shore.

A lighthouse starts to glow.

Today is never more.

Life is just a carousal.

Full of laughter and uproar.

A beacon guides me through the night, To another distant shore.

You were once my lighthouse.

Now I'm going ta another shore.

Life is just an illusion.

Today is never more.

I can see the light.

It guides me through the night.

It takes away my fears of all the years

I new journey is about to start.

Keith was the type of person who would risk his life to support me. Once while I was 40 feet high on a ladder, a large limb accidentally came down and instead of running away, he held firmly on that ladder to prevent his brother from falling. He chose to take the direct hit as the huge limb came down right on his skull, forcing him to the hospital with a concussion. Keith was a stable ladder throughout my life.

Keith was generous. When Keith did have strong earnings in the early part of his life, he was very generous to me, helping with the down payment on my wife and I's first house; he gave Boeing stock to his half-brother Mike Baity when he was born. He bought a special gold mouse pin for his grandmother, whose animal name was "Mouse." He used his entire summer earnings to buy our mother a new tennis racquet. Keith was kind with animals, particularly my dog Ellie.

Keith travelled around the world. He lived in Brazil, Paris, and Saudi Arabia (working for the Royal Family). Keith was fluent in Portuguese and conversant in French.

Friends and family remember Keith as a person with witty observations and dry sense of humor. We also remember his taste for decorating and artwork.

Keith, after 68 years together, and being so close and doing so many things together, I can't imagine life without you. You were my support person in all difficult situations in my life. You were my flashlight in the darkness and my security in the daylight. Keith, my fond memories of you will not fade with time. We will look to the skies and hear the angels singing from high above in heaven.