On February 20, LM alum Forrest Keys (‘19) was fatally shot on the campus of the University of Arizona. Forrest played football and basketball for Lower Moreland and was known for being a fierce competitor, but also for the respect he showed to his coaches, teammates, and opposing players. LMHS science teacher and Boys Basketball coach Seth Baron graciously shared a few stories about his time as Forrest’s teacher and coach.

“Forrest started as a freshman on an awesome team that went to the final 8 in the state tournament, led by Danny Duffy and Tyler Millan. The senior class that year was very focused on winning, and for a freshman to make the starting lineup and produce the way he did was miraculous. He was always covering guys much taller, older, and more experienced, yet Forrest always ended up producing multiple points and rebounds.

During Forrest’s senior year, we were playing an incredibly high-ranked team in the State semifinals with multiple D1 players. This never phased our team, and in usual form they didn’t back down in the least. In the 4th quarter we were down by more than we would have liked, and Bonner’s star player Isaiah Wong was going in for an open court slam dunk. Forrest was the last man to beat, and he was not going to let him get the crowd to their feet with a dunk. He met him at the rim and fouled him hard. It was legal . . . and a very hard foul . . . but it was the right move. Forrest was always doing the right thing.  

I really admired just watching Forrest play through injury . . . he was always playing through the pain. He was just a warrior. A complete team player. A brother to his teammates. He never played for the name on the back of the jersey (we didn’t have names there anyway) . . . he always played for the name on the front. He played for his basketball family.

You can always tell something about a person and how they face life by the way they face the game when they are on the court. Forrest never complained in any game. He always gave 100%, and always stood up for his teammates. Forrest always had fun competing, and was always respectful of the coaches and refs . . . All of these also could describe Forrest in life as well.”

The entire LM community extends their sincere condolences to Forrest’s family and friends. Below is a link to donate to the Forrest Beckett Keys Memorial Scholarship Endowment through the University of Arizona, as well as the Forrest Keys Memorial Fund, organized by Zeta Beta Tau, Forrest’s fraternity at U of A.

https://giving.arizona.edu/forrest-beckett-keys 

https://www.gofundme.com/f/forrest-keys-memorial-fund?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p_cp+share-sheet