Mary Keane's Obituary
Mary Theresa Keane passed away March 14, 2019 after a seven year battle with ovarian cancer. Mary was born in Newton, Massachusetts. When Mary and her older brother Jack were babies the family moved to the remote fishing village of Isle au Haut, Maine, where Mary attended grammar school in a one room schoolhouse. In the early 1950s her family moved to Long Beach, California, where Mary developed a passion for warm beaches and roller skating, winning numerous dance skate awards and attaining the rank of Gold Bar. In the 1970s she followed her brothers to Anchorage, Alaska, where she studied theater at the University of Alaska, starring in plays such as Arthur Miller’s After the Fall.The sun eventually drew her back to California where she worked as the Vice-President of Anastasi Construction. Building just 20 units a year when she began, eight years later Anastasi was building over 400 units throughout the beach towns of the South Bay. To be near her aging parents, Mary moved to Eufaula, Oklahoma where she met and married Tom Odom. She and Tom moved to Tulsa in the late 1980s where she continued to flourish in the real estate business. She opened Keane Realtors in 1992 and together with Steve Harris of PMC Homes, formed a building company and sales team that at its height closed over 200 homes per year. Throughout her career Mary was an active member of the Tulsa Home Builders Association, serving on the Board of Directors, Executive Council, and as Membership Chairperson. In 2000 she founded the Sales and Marketing Council of the Tulsa HBA and served as its president for two years, winning the prestigious honor of NSMC Best Sales and Marketing Council in 2001 at the National Association of Homebuilders Convention. She was a mentor to many, teaching new home sale classes for many years and even hosting a radio show about the homebuying process, Keane Ideas.Mary loved the sun and the roar of the ocean and enjoyed traveling any place she could dip her toes in warm sand. She could talk anyone through a problem over a margarita or glass of good wine and was frequently sought out for advice by those close to her. She was vivacious and had an innate ability to read people, a trait that made her an excellent realtor, an even better friend, and a force at the poker table. She rarely passed up the opportunity for a celebration and was known for her delicious tacos and lively parties. Though she didn’t have children of her own, she was a beloved friend and mentor to her niece and nephew. She will be deeply missed by her friends, family, and community.Mary is preceded in death by her parents, her husband, Tom Odom, and her brother Jack Keane. She is survived by her brother, Tom (Peerooza Hataria) Keane, niece, Priya (Nicholas Shepherd) Keane, sister-in-law Dionnah Rickman, nephew Rama (Ellie) Ishaya, sister-in-law Persis Hataria, and great-nephew Leland Ishaya.An open house gathering will be held in honor of Mary on Saturday, March 30, 2019 from 3 to 6 pm at the Tulsa Historical Society. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that contributions be made to Dress for Success Tulsa or the Global Girls Alliance.
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