Keith Michael Opdahl

Keith Michael Opdahl, 79, of Greencastle, died on Dec. 31, 2013.

Keith, son of Florence Holmquist and Olaf Solomon Opdahl, and loving husband of Martha Opdahl, died from complications following surgery at the IU Simon Cancer Center in Indianapolis.

Keith was born on Nov. 4, 1934, into a Chicago-based Scandinavian family. He attended public schools in Oak Park, Chicago-Oak Park High School, class of 1952.

His hobby was photography for which he saved up to buy equipment for his dark room in the basement of his home. In 1956, he graduated from Denison University, where he was a member of Phi Delta Gamma fraternity, co-editor of the student paper, and excelled on the debate team.

He earned his MA and PhD degrees in American literature from 1956-61 at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana. He wrote the first critical appraisal of Saul Bellow's work, published as "The Novels of Saul Bellow" (1967). (Bellow was awarded the Nobel Prize in literature in 1976.) Keith taught American literature and creative writing courses at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (1961-67).

To balance his life of the mind as an academic, he built a 12-foot sailboat in his second-floor apartment.

In 1965, Keith married Martha Donovan, a graduate student at UW, and took his new bride to honeymoon in a tent on an acre of woods on the shores of Fisher Lake near Mercer, Wis. They returned every summer with their children, eventually building a cabin and making improvements on it yearly. There Keith wrote every day in his study, a converted outhouse with a view of the lake, fished for walleye, sailed his boat and took his young family on boating and hiking adventures.

After seven years at UW, Keith opted to teach at a small liberal arts college -- DePauw University. He was an engaging, popular teacher who challenged his students and held them to rigorous standards, earning the nickname "Captain Hook" for the C grades he awarded for average work. Several of his students kept in touch after graduation and claim that he had made a difference in their lives.

He received DePauw faculty development grants for literary research as well as teaching awards. In 1971-72, Keith was awarded a Fulbright Teaching Fellowship to the University of Coimbra in Portugal. In 1990, he was awarded DePauw's first Jane Cooling Brady Chair of American Literature for significant contributions through scholarship and teaching.

He retired from full-time teaching in 1992. Throughout his academic career, he continued to publish critical articles on contemporary American fiction in academic journals and books of collected essays. He developed a theory of the imagination based on a new understanding of emotion. "Emotion as Meaning: The Literary Case for How We Imagine" was published in 2002.

Keith was witty and charming, a natural storyteller, and loved for his jovial nature, vitality and ability to connect meaningfully with anyone who crossed his path. He was an unusual combination of brainy intellect and empathetic feeling: A brain with a heart.

He played golf with good companions in the Wednesday Scramble at Old Hickory Golf course, or teed off at sunrise alone or with a friend. He loved to read contemporary fiction and had wide-ranging interests. He practiced composting and organic gardening in a backyard plot. He cheered for his wookies on the Greencastle swim teams and led a Cub Scout pack that achieved soapbox derby wins.

In his retirement years, Keith took up fine woodworking and built cherry furniture for family members. He was an excellent cook, most notably of cassoulet and savory tarts. He participated in energetic political debates, leaning decidedly left of center, and arguing for social and economic justice and the common good.

Above all, he was a dedicated husband, father and grandfather who is remembered lovingly for his warm-heartedness, winning sense of humor, sunny disposition ("he would light up the room the minute he walked in"), his giving nature ("the best and most supportive of friends"), integrity, and sharp intellect ("we all were so enriched by knowing him").

Keith is survived by his wife Martha; his son, Michael Opdahl and daughter-in-law Kristan Opdahl of Altadena, Calif.; his daughter, Cristina Opdahl and son-in-law Christopher Danz of Fayetteville, W.Va.; and his brother, Jon Opdahl of Fort Collins, Colo. He is also survived by four grandchildren and two nephews. Losing him has left a hole in many hearts.

The family welcomes friends and relatives to a remembrance gathering on Saturday, May 10 from 2-6 p.m. in the Bartlett Reflection Center on the grounds of the Prindle Institute for Ethics at DePauw University, 2961 W. CR 225 South, Greencastle IN 46135. (Directions can be found at http://www.depauw.edu/academics/centers/prindle.)

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Keith M. Opdahl Memorial Fund for Contemporary American Fiction at Roy O. West Library, DePauw University. Mail to the DPU Giving Office, 300 E. Seminary St., Greencastle IN 46135 (memo: Keith Opdahl Memorial Fund).

A memorial website keith-opdahl.forevermissed.com has been created.