John D. Keller, age 83, died Tuesday, November 22, 2022, at Evanston Hospital, in Evanston.

Son of the late Sarah, née Hall, and David L. “Danny” Keller, he was born December 23, 1938, in Chicago.

Beloved husband of Sally, née Baker; proud father of Penelope Stevens-Keller, Pandora Stevens-Keller, and Brett Keller; fond father-in-law of Andrea Monter; and loving grandfather of Louis Ray-Stevens and Talfryn Keller.

John grew up in the Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago and attended Lane Tech High School. He earned a B.F.A. degree in Design at Southern Illinois University, in Carbondale. One of John’s instructors there was the legendary R. Buckminster Fuller, who developed the practical concepts to build the geodesic dome. John was one of the students who built a dome at SIU under his tutelage.

In 1970, John founded Convention Exhibits, Inc., a custom exhibit design, production, and installation company. He was president there for 18 years, and then moved on to other business interests and pursuits. For the past 14 years, John was a dedicated physical fitness instructor, teaching exercise classes to active older adults.

In addition to his family and friends, John loved classic collector cars, jazz and country music, and was a fan of old-time western books and television shows. He and his wife, Sally, lived in several Chicago suburbs over the years, including Evanston, Wilmette, Mundelein, and Gurnee.

A Celebration of Life will be held in the Spring of 2023.

In lieu of flowers, donations in John’s memory may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN, 38105 (stjude.org) or the Alzheimer’s Association, 8430 W. Bryn Mawr Ave., Suite 800, Chicago, IL, 60631 (alz.org).

Funeral info:  847.673.6111 or habenfuneral.com to sign guestbook and to leave a condolence message.

To send flowers to the family or place a tree in memory of John D. Keller, please visit our Tribute Store.