Point Reyes Light - September 30, 2004

Former resident of Inverness dies

By Larken Bradley

Miles Thomas McKey, whose family’s connection to Inverness began in 1914 when his great-grandfather, Sierra Club secretary William E. Colby, built a family home there, died unexpectedly Friday, Aug. 27 of possible heart failure, while riding his bicycle at Golden Gate Fields in Albany. He was 48.

Mr. McKey’s maternal grandmother, longtime Inverness resident Ruth Colby Hunter, died last November at age 98.

A resident of Albany at the time of his death, Mr. McKey had lived in West Marin off and on for many years.

A general contractor, he was known for his meticulous attention to detail. He recently oversaw a $2 million chapel renovation at Unity in Marin, his spiritual home. Mr. McKey was also involved in the Four-Fold Way, a cross-cultural educational program.

Born in Boston on Oct. 29, 1955, he graduated from Winter Park High School in Florida, and later moved with his family to Berkeley. In 1985 he graduated with honors from UC Davis with a bachelor’s degree in political science. Tall, slender and blond, "he had wonderful blue eyes that would stare right into your soul," remarked his mother, Mary Colby McKey. "Miles was a seeker," added friend Rishi Schweig of Inverness Park.

"He felt strongly about social justice for all people," friends noted. An avid outdoorsman, he also enjoyed the theater and music, and was a longtime contra dancer.

Mr. McKey is survived by his mother, Mary Colby McKey of Winter Park, Florida; father and step-mother, Miles R. and Mary Ellen McKey of Berkeley; brother and sister-in-law, Andy McKey and Marcia Ely of Brooklyn, New York; sister, Emily Delight of Missoula, Montana; stepsister, Laura Whittemore of Portland, Oregon; and his nephews, Jeremy McKey; Miles McKey; Jonathan Delight; and Jacob Delight. The family has suggested that any memorial contributions be made to Unity in Marin; or to a favorite conservation organization.

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