RAY'S STORY
Arizona Roots, Service, and Engineering Career
An Arizonan since childhood, in the 8th Congressional District I am a product of the state’s public schools and Arizona State University, which has been the home base for my adult life and community involvement. I enlisted in the U.S. Army after my first year at ASU, trained in infantry, mortars, and airborne, and served with the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, completing over 170 military and recreational parachute jumps. After an honorable discharge, I returned to ASU on the GI Bill, earning a B.S. in mathematics with a computer science option. I then built a decades‑long career as a software engineer focused on avionics, programming and testing cockpit computers and engine controls for major aircraft manufacturers, and serving as software verification lead during the 2006 certification of the Eclipse jet.
Leadership, Rescue Work, and Conservation Focus
Throughout my life, leadership and service have extended beyond my professional career into faith, rescue work, and conservation. At ASU, I served as activities leader for the All Saints Newman Center and president of the Outdoors Club, experience that helped prepare me for 13 international expeditions focused on mapping caves and water movement. For 17 years, I served on the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office mountain rescue team, co‑leading abandoned mine and cave rescues and working as an EMT for eight years. My recreation has evolved toward science‑driven conservation and land management, particularly around water issues in the Southwest, and I have held national leadership roles in the National Speleological Society, most recently serving as government liaison to the U.S. Forest Service, National Park Service, and Bureau of Land Management for cave and karst issues.
Ray in the Media
Ray - March 2026 STROLL
Hi there. We are the Keelers on north 43rd Avenue in the beige house with the tile roof and the desert landscaping out front … no worries. Stephanie and I have been married for over 25 years, and you may have seen either (or both) of us out with the dogs (now dog, Noodle) on the Stetson Hills trails and parks. We both came here at very young ages with our families; Stephanie in Scottsdale (Saguaro HS, NAU/ASU) and me in (now central) Phoenix (Camelback HS, ASU). Her family came from California, mine from southeast New Mexico. We moved into the Stetson Hills neighborhood in 2001. We were out looking for new carpet for our other home and decided to stop by the models … ooops 😉. After a year at ASU, I enlisted in the Army and ended up in the 82nd Airborne Division. I took that a bit further and must admit tailgating out of the back of C130 while skydiving with a bunch people at 15,000 feet is a hoot! The turbulence just below the plane tosses you everywhere.
Stephanie was a volunteer dispatcher for the Central Arizona Mountain Rescue Team (CAMRA). CAMRA is the Maricopa County Sheriff Office (MCSO) high angle search and rescue team. She was a 30+ year, special ed, public school teacher and CAMRA was a way of helping the community. I was in CAMRA for 17 years, getting called out for people missing or hurt in remote places like the Superstition mountains, White Tanks and Estrella mountains. My particular specialty is abandoned mines and caves, primarily mapping. So, basically, Stephanie would call me up in the middle of the night and tell me where to go, before the team started using pagers! We "met" each other a few years later, when we happened to be at the same place, and one of the CAMRA Op Leaders whom we both knew also stopped by. To support my outdoor activities, I am an avionics software engineer, programming or verifying aircraft guidance systems and aircraft engines. Great fun.
Stephanie was on the HOA landscaping committee for over 10 years, eventually becoming the committee chair. She has her Master Gardener certification. My off-work activities have revolved around caves, exploration, mapping, conservation and cave management. I have been a member of the National Speleological Society (NSS) for over 40 years, which has led to going on 13 international expeditions mapping new parts of the world. I was a VP in the 8000 plus non-profit corporation for six years, and later as the government liaison for the NSS to the USFS, BLM and NPS for caves and karst. Karst is the surface landform that is affected by water and voids below it. This is especially relevant in Arizona since we are in a drought.
Stephanie has been retired for awhile and enjoying it immensely. She has volunteered with several organizations over the years. I thought I was retired when I completed a cyber security software transfer project two and a half years ago. Now we are discovering that we are much busier now than we ever expected. For example, Stephanie hiked the Dingle Peninsula in Ireland (114 miles in nine days) with her friends, and I was able to go down to Antarctica in November 2024 on an 11-day trip. … excellent presentations by experts, lots of penguins (and penguin poop), seals, birds, whales and orcas … and high winds and cold. The polar plunge was great!
I would like to do a shout out to the Valle Luna at 34th Avenue and Bell Road, which is our favorite restaurant. I have been going there for 40 years. Their Mexican cosine is excellent, their staff is always friendly and efficient, the prices are reasonable, and I recently discovered that the owners live in Stetson Hills.
My two sons from a previous marriage are out of college and working in their majors.
Project 2
This is text element. Double click this element to edit text. You can change size, position and all other parameters including background, border and many more.
Paid for by Raymond Keeler for U.S Congressional District 8. Authorized by Raymond Keeler.
Mailing Address: Raymond Keeler for U.S Congressional District 8 | PO BOX 10485 Glendale 85318
raykeeler4az@gmail.com