I received this email and am reposting it here (with permission). A heck of a tribute to our friend Dan. Obviously he touched many people…

I ran across your website that you set up for Dan Keitz. I am Jeff Hasley and I served with him in the Navy and I am very sad to hear that he passed away. He had such a great influence on me and I will greatly miss his wry sense of humor.

When I was deployed to Afghanistan I flew a flag for him over Bagram Airfield. Three weeks ago, my wife Catheryne and I named our first child after him. I have been trying to find a way to pass along a picture to him and his family but I had no contact information.

I attached two photographs of him and I give you permission to post them on your website and pass them to the Keitz family. This was the best way I could think of to honor a great sailor and a great man.

Daniel Sean Hasley
Named in honor of Dan Keitz
October 19, 2010
Clear Lake Hospital, Webster TX
6 lbs, 12.5 oz, 18.25 inches
Mom, Dad and Daniel are doing well.

Just got the news that Dan lost his gallant battle with ALS over the weekend.

He touched a lot of people in his far too short life. ALS may have taken his body, but it didn’t take his spirit.

Dan’s running again.

Meet my friend Dan Keitz.

I worked with Dan back in the day at Motorola in world-famous (at least we thought so) MOS-11 in Austin.

It’s a big giant semiconductor manufacturing fab. Very complicated, very technical stuff. I never really figured out what Dan did there…

I just remember him sitting in a cubicle at the top of the stairs. He always greeted you with a smile and a story. He always had cool toys in his office and he always made me laugh my ass off. Dan is one of the funniest guys on the planet.

He was also a Commander in the U.S. Navy.

And an ultra-marathon runner.

He’s a family man.

He’s ridiculously smart. Heck, he’s a University of Texas alumni times two!

And he is, without question, a world-class human being — one of the finest individuals I’ve had the pleasure of knowing.

Now Dan has ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis – Lou Gehrig’s disease) and CIDP (Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy).

I haven’t seen Dan in many years, but I’ve never forgotten him. And now he needs help and I suspect he doesn’t even want to ask for it.

So please, if you can, click on the “Donate” button over to your right. You can donate with a credit card through PayPal’s secure payment system. You do not need a PayPal account. It’s not tax deductible, but Dan needs it. His medical costs are absurd.

Here’s a video Dan’s son Kendal made to show the stages his dad has gone through in his diseases. Bring a box of Kleenex…