Timothy Roe Ketchum

December 30, 1971 - June 19, 2025

Timothy Roe Ketchum was pure magic. Early signs of his amazingness were evident in his knack for getting along with just about anyone, from kindergarten classmates to 75 year old neighbors. A mischievous grin and a reflex towards generosity made him impossible not to like. Throughout his life, he loved playing games and sports and his early years on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC were spent playing on the sidewalk in front of his house, in the parks near his home, on the playground of St Peter School, and on the soccer fields that were part of the budding soccer-mania of the 1970s. His frequent partners in foursquare, relay races and Nerf football were his older brother and sister, John and Sarah. As long as one would agree to be a permanent pitcher or quarterback, there was a game to be had.

Tim and his siblings’ adventures crossed state lines thanks to a family cabin in Pennsylvania. Summers were spent on Bear Mountain near Gettysburg, PA. While their dad, James Ketchum, worked in Washington, DC as curator of the US Senate, their mom, Barbara Ketchum, wrangled Tim, Sarah and John at the cabin. Long hours were spent at the local state park swimming in Fuller Lake. Games of Parcheesi, “War” in the woods around the cabin, and trips to the public library to load up on books made for idyllic summer months.Those days really were special for the Ketchum family.

As Tim got older, he shifted schools (attending St. Anselm’s Abby School from 7th - 12th grades) and sports (focusing on basketball) and summer activities (working for the US Senate Stationery Room, delivering office supplies to Senate offices). But he never lost his knack for befriending everyone he met. He was funny and charming and curious, equally adept at cracking a joke as he was to offer comfort. He had a grandmother who couldn’t wait in a checkout line without learning the life story of the person next to her. And he had parents who volunteered for numerous local organizations in an effort to foster community and kindness. So it’s likely that both nature and nurture led to his immense generosity and likability.

Tim attended Haverford College, where he officially majored in Anthropology and graduated with honors in 1994. Unofficially, he majored in forging friendships with a group of people who became his core community for the rest of his life. He also had the distinction of playing on the Haverford men’s basketball team at a time when they were hoping to avoid the longest losing streak in college sports. This feat was documented in a very enjoyable article in Sports Illustrated, published in April 2014.

After college, Tim lived in Rome, Italy for a year as a teaching intern at Marymount International School. The love of travel took root and was woven into his career search. In subsequent years he worked as a contract archaeologist across the east coast, an educational intern at Crow Canyon in Cortez, Colorado, and a teacher at St. Michael’s School in Tucson, Arizona. It was while he was working at Crow Canyon that he met the love of his life, Carolyn Currie, a fellow intern at the archaeological center. In an attempt to reduce “first date” pressure, Tim asked Carolyn out to the local laundromat. Laundry and laughter were the hallmarks of that first date and laughter continued to be at the heart of their courtship, be it gentle teasing, silly puns, or Tim’s exuberant (and exquisite) dance moves. Tim and Carolyn were married in October 2001 in Toronto, Ontario.

In the early days of their marriage, Tim and Carolyn lived in Tempe, AZ, where Tim shifted to working in the field of finance. He continued on that path when a job opportunity for Carolyn led to a cross-country move to Boston. It was there that they started a family, having son Austin in 2004 and daughters Celia and Maggie in 2006 and 2009. Tim adored being a dad. The family house in Wakefield, MA had a huge playroom on the third floor and he loved hunkering down on the floor of that room with race car tracks or dollhouses or Legos to play with his kids. He and Carolyn introduced their children to their love of travel. Early on the trips were to Carolyn’s family’s favorite summer spot in Muskoka, Ontario and to visit Tim’s family in Pennsylvania, Maine and Washington, DC. As the kids got older, the destinations reached across oceans and time zones to places like Australia and Switzerland.

Travel was at the foundation of Tim’s continued connection to his college friends. The group met up to attend World Cup soccer matches in Germany and Brazil. NFL and MLB games and US soccer matches played stateside were also frequent travel destinations for this group of guys. And sometimes they’d just pick a city they wanted to visit and make a date to meet up there. The original crew of friends grew over time to incorporate siblings, grad school roommates and co-workers. Craft beers, meandering and meaningful conversations, and a fervent hope that there would be a chance to get Tim to dance were usually on the itinerary when the group gathered.

A connection to friends who lived in Portland, Oregon inspired Tim and Carolyn to consider moving west. Two visits to the city sealed the deal. They moved to Portland in 2014 and loved their new hometown, throwing themselves into putting the finishing touches on a house in the Sabin neighborhood and volunteering in support of their children’s activities, from fundraisers to coaching. The influence of Tim’s early days of playing outdoors on Capitol Hill was easy to see. Now there was morning pickleball and bike rides with daughter Celia, basketball at the local playground with son Austin and coaching daughter Maggie in futsal.

In 2021, Tim shifted from working outside the home to helping Carolyn manage her business as food blogger and cookbook author. The additional time with his wife, children and a growing menagerie of pets (Taco the fluffiest of mini Aussies, cats Gryffin, Marvin and Mazzy) brought contentment to Tim. Having time to travel with family and friends continued to be central to Tim’s life. In his final months, he went to Argentina with his family and Boulder, CO with his friends. He had trips to Spain and Ireland on his dance card in summer and fall of 2025.

Tim was on a trip to Lake Tahoe with some of his best friends when he suddenly became ill. On June 18 he spent what he would have described as a perfect day, hiking, swimming, playing games on the beach, and barbecuing. On the morning of June 19, he began feeling unwell. A trip to the local emergency room and transfer to a larger hospital led to surgery to repair a ruptured abdominal aorta. It was heartbreaking for the many who loved Tim that he did not survive the surgery. In fitting with a lifetime of generosity towards others, Tim left behind organ donations, including his corneas.

Tim is deeply missed by his wife Carolyn Ketchum, his children Austin, Celia and Margaret Ketchum; his brother John Ketchum and sister Sarah Baker; sisters-in-law Katherine Ketchum and Amanda Goodison; brothers-in-law David Baker and David Goodison; mother-in-law Jo Currie; stepmother-in-law Chris Buckley; aunts Marie Van Ness, Kate Gibbs, Ellen Ketchum Pullman; uncles Dick Ketchum, Dan Ketchum and Joe Pullman; nieces Frances Ketchum, Morgan Baker and Lilah Goodison; nephews Robert Ketchum, Corin Baker and Henry Goodison. They mourn the loss of his incandescent personality and infinite kindnesses. They are joined by countless cousins, classmates, and co-workers. And of course his many friends. And really, anybody he met. Tim Ketchum, like his smile and his laugh and his dance moves, was pure magic.

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