LAKE CITY, Fla. – Capt. Ronald E. “Mike” McKee passed away on Dec. 15, at the age of 75, following an extended illness.

He was born in Beaver Falls, Penn., on July 18, 1933. He was a veteran of the Korean Conflict serving on the U.S. Destroyer Benham. Following the war, Capt. McKee attended Maine Maritime Academy in Castine, where he graduated as a midshipman with the class of 1959. In 1985, Capt. McKee retired from the Panama Canal Commission.

He leaves his wife of 49 years, Joanne Pinette McKee; two sons and two daughters, Michael (Libby) McKee and Patricia (Bert) Giddens, of Lake City, Fla., Kathleen (David) McCarty and Matthew (Lori) McKee, both of Fort White, Fla.; granddaughters, Kathryn and Amanda Hillyard, Taylor McKee, Heather McCarty and Angela Parrish; and numerous nieces and nephews also survive.

He was preceded in death by his father, W. Mike McKee; his mother, Helen Fleeson McKee Allen; and his sister, Evelyn McKee Pagani.