Mayor Maureen Donker (right) presents a proclamation recognizing the career of Assistant City Manager Dave Keenan (left) the night before his retirement at a Midland City Council meeting on July 24, 2023 in City Hall.
Isabelle Pasciolla/Midland Daily News
Midland Daily News
Isabelle Pasciolla, Midland Daily News
The Midland City Council meeting got off to an emotional start on Monday night as Mayor Maureen Donker gave a proclamation to Assistant City Manager Dave Keenan wishing him well as he heads into retirement.
Keenan will retire on July 25 after serving the City of Midland for more than 23 years in a variety of roles. He was hired as City Controller in 2000, was promoted to Director of Fiscal Services in 2004 and has served as Assistant City Manager since 2011.
Keenan began his career in private sector and public accounting and came to Midland with a Bachelor’s Degree and MBA from Central Michigan University and as a Certified Public Accountant. He has an honorary lifetime membership to the Michigan Government Finance Officers Association, having served as the association’s president, and received an appointment to the State of Michigan’s Local Community Stabilization Authority by Gov. Rick Snyder in 2016.
Since coming to the city, he has helped navigate the community through several crises such as a recession, floods, dam failures and a pandemic.
"Dave in both his role as Director of Fiscal Services and Assistant City Manager has consistently demonstrated his dedication and commitment to the best interests of the community and has worked constantly to provide sound and astute advice to City Staff, City Managers and City Council alike," the city's proclamation read.
Keenan is also known for his musical talent as a member of the Stephen Court Band, playing hits from Prince to Thin Lizzy, singing the national anthem at sporting events including Loons and Tigers games, and opening for Michael Bolton.
"Dave’s knowledge, dedication, extraordinary commitment to public service, and most importantly, his ethics, integrity, and sense of humor have endeared him to City Council, his peers, City employees and the community," the proclamation reads.
Donker presented the proclamation to Keenan with a few words reflecting on his career.
"We love you, you're loved by many members of our city and certainly you're well appreciated by folks across the state," she said. "You sing way better than Michael Bolton, I was there…We're going to miss you."
Keenan said he often gave his staff the advice to show up, work hard, always do the best they can do, be nice and never be afraid to do the right thing - advice that he followed throughout his career.
"For me, every day I came to work was a good day, and thank you all for allowing me to do it for 23 years," he said.