Cecil Keith joined our class after attending elementary school in Larkinsville. After graduation, he went to Berry College in Rome, Georgia where he earned a degree with a double major in physics and mathematics. He credits Mrs. Sanders and Miss Michaels with his foundation for success in these subjects. He met his future wife, Sallie, at Berry and they married before they graduated.Cecil’s first job after college was teaching math and science at Dalton High School in Dalton, Georgia. After one year, he taught at Coosa Valley Tech School in Rome, Georgia, teaching calculus and physics. In 1968, an opportunity came to move to Huntsville for a job with the US Army Missile Command on Redstone Arsenal. He hired in as a mechanical engineer, primarily involving metrology, which is the science of weights and measures. During his tenure at Redstone, Cecil earned a master’s degree in administrative science and worked in the Space and Missile Command. He retired in 2001, as the Director of the Simulation Directorate. He had thirty-two years of service. Cecil said that he began his career with a slide rule and retired managing super computers.

Cecil has been a diabetic for the last thirty years and he had open-heart surgery the year he retired, 2001. He recovered from Lyme disease in 2004. Fortunately, he recovered because he was aware that he had been bitten by a tick, and was able to give doctors this information when he began to have symptoms.

At this point in their lives, Cecil and Sallie’s work is voluntary. Cecil really likes teaching and he and Sallie are very active in the First Baptist Church of Huntsville. The Sunday school class he teaches is “our” age, or what he calls “freshman seniors.” Cecil’s mother is now ninety-three years old and lives with Cecil and Sallie every other month. She lives with Marie, Cecil’s sister, the alternating months.

Researching the Keith and Wallace (his maternal side) families is one of Cecil’s favorite pastimes. Both families originated in Scotland and Cecil has traveled to Scotland for family reunions. He has also become a student of Scottish and English history. He is involved in other activities of the clan, including serving as editor of their newsletter, named KEITH & KIN.

Cecil and Sallie have two children. Their daughter, Selena, has three children and lives in New Jersey. Their son, Ryan, married this summer and lives in Huntsville.

By the way, in Huntsville, Cecil is known as James, which is his first given name. But, it is hard to change what you call someone you have known for a long time!