Help Leslie after the tragic passing of Thomas F O'Keefe Jr.

Hi, my name is Sean O'Keefe and I'm a son of the late Thomas Francis O'Keefe Jr. The purpose of this GoFundMe is to help raise funds to help offset some of the significant medical bills during his week long trauma visit, ultimately resulting in my father's passing. I'm creating this for my mother, his wife, Leslie O'Keefe. She would never take this leap to ask for help and I hope to relieve some of the burden from her, so she can focus on her grief and learn how to transition into her new life. Please take a moment to read our story and learn a little bit about my father.

On Thursday, March 13th, 2025, my father slipped and fell in his home and hit the back of his head on the tile floor. Post fall, he was confused and was having trouble breathing. He was subsequently transported by helicopter to trauma hospital, Sarasota Memorial.

On Saturday, March 15th, 2025, after a day of scans, including a CT scan, it revealed nothing new. At this time, it was decided to put him on a protocol of blood thinners for his existing cardiac issues. Later this day, my father had a severe headache. On Sunday, March 16th, 2025, in the early morning hours, after receiving medicine for his headache, he was found unresponsive by a nurse.

He was intubated, rushed back to the ICU and more scans were completed. The CT scan now showed a massive bleed on the ride side of his brain, from the front to the back. Emergency surgery commenced and it was successful.

Unfortunately, after the sedation was stopped, my father never woke up and was showing many signs of severe neurological deficiencies over the next couple of days. All the doctors gave him a poor prognosis and it was confirmed by the start of many visible seizures that affected his face and jaw.

We spent a lot of time depending on the power of prayer and hope. But ultimately the immediate family came together and met with palliative and hospice care. My father never wanted anyone to cry for him, have to care for him or not be able to care for himself. His independence was everything to him. We honored his wishes on this day and placed him in the care of hospice, to ensure he was comfortable through his transition to heaven.

On March 20th, 2025, numerous loved ones and family members arrived at the hospice house to tell stories around my father and reminisce about all the good times. It was late, so everyone said their peace and best wishes to my father, because they knew time was not on his side.

On March 21st, 2025, at 03:40 am, just hours after many prayers, laughter and stories amongst friends and family, my father passed over into heaven. Of course he did it Tom O'Keefe fashion, when no one was around.

My father passed swiftly and peacefully. He is pain free, stress free and illness free. He gets to spend an eternity with my eldest brother, his son, Thomas Francis O'Keefe III.

My father was loved, respected and cherished by many. He was always the life of the party and the jokester. He loves making others laugh and smile. He spent a large portion of his life protecting, serving and helping those in need. His decorated 30+ year career in law enforcement was primarily at the Metro Dade Police Department (now the Miami Dade Sheriff's Office) in Miami, Florida. There, he worked the majority of his career as a narcotics detective. He received numerous awards, commendations and high praise for his outstanding police work.

Again, this will help lessen the burden my mother is about to face head-on. I want to ensure this life transition is as smooth as possible. Any amount, big or small, will help and we will be forever grateful for your generosity.

Thank you for your time and God bless!