Pamela Nelson Keys was born to Geraldine Nelson in Oak Grove, LA. She graduated from Oak Grove High School in 1972 and then went onto further her education at Grambling State University. She began her career working at Grambling as a secretary in 1986 and continued that career path at several locations including the City of Rialto, The Rialto Fire Department, the Dallas Independent School District and the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and Mountain View Community College. She also worked for Dallas County Health and Human Services for 14 years where she eventually retired from. Her last office job was for the Magisterial Court of Cumberland County where she worked for seven years until 2020 when the pandemic led to her rightful and final retirement.

Pamela enlisted in the U.S Navy in 1978 where she served for twenty years. She traveled many places including England, Spain, North Africa, Italy, Scotland, Korea, Australia and Hawaii. If you knew Pamela, you knew how proud she was of her time spent in the Navy and how much she loved to travel. She had wonderful stories about her journeys and lots of pictures to share with her loved ones around her.

On July 15, 1983, she gave birth to her pride and joy, Ishmael Emmanuel Thompson. Pamela loved spending time with Ishmael and was a loving and devoted mother to him up until the time of his unfortunate death in June of 2002. She actively worked with groups and organizations for parents who had loss children and would release butterflies at the zoo in his honor.

After an exceedingly challenging time in her life, she was blessed to meet the love of her life, Daniel Keys and his daughter, Danielle in October of 2004. The two married shortly after on April 5, 2005. They lived together in Fort Worth, Texas until 2012 when Daniel was called to pastor a church in Carlisle, PA. Pamela followed and served as the first lady of Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church.

She spent her time as a retiree doing the thing that she loved the most, which was spending time with her family. She loved homeschooling her oldest granddaughter, Alyssia, whom she cherished dearly. She loved to find arts and crafts projects for them and they also loved to find new movies to watch together. She loved to watch HGTV and watching award ceremony shows with her daughter, Danielle. She loved Tigers due to her alma mater Grambling. She was very passionate about holidays and she loved the cold weather. She was a faithful Christian woman who loved God and worshiped him faithfully. She was a beloved mother, grandmother, friend and cousin.

On Monday, January 22, 2024, she transitioned from this earthly life into eternal life at the UPMC West Shore Hospital in Mechanicsburg, PA.

Pamela was preceded in death by her mother, Geraldine Rosby; her stepfather, William Rosby; her son, Ishmael Thompson and her brother-in-law, James G Keys.

She leaves behind to continue her legacy and cherish memories of her, her husband, Daniel Keys of Mechanicsburg, PA; her daughter, Danielle Keys; her granddaughters, Alyssia Keys and Brielle Marie Colley of Fort Worth, Texas; her sisters-in-law, Florence Keys Stewart (Bob Stewart) of Manassas, Virginia, Patty Jo Keys of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and Paulette Keys of Miami, Florida; her mother-in-law, Mary Alice Chivis Keys of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Pamela's life will be celebrated at 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, February 6, 2024 in the Sanctuary of The Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church, 20 Locust Street, Steelton, PA with viewing and visitation from 10:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m. and burial in Indiantown Gap National Cemetery.