A beloved coach and mentor in Burleson ISD for a quarter-century is gone but never forgotten. Coach Keith Gilbert died at 5 p.m. Tuesday at Arlington Memorial Hospital. He was 55.  Gilbert was diagnosed in October with inoperable esophageal cancer. His work will be remembered in a new scholarship program, Gilbert’s Gridiron, which was established recently for Burleson High School students in the coach’s honor.

“Throughout the years, Keith has extended dedicated services to the youth of our community, not only in the capacity of an instructor, but also by being there as a friend and counselor to hundreds of young people,” Mayor Ken Shetter said recently. “Keith has earned the admiration and highest regard of the people with whom he has come in contact, and the affection of his friends and family.”
The funeral was to be held Saturday at St. Matthew Cumberland Presbyterian Church.

Survivors include wife, Jeanie, of 18 years; children, Chase, Courte, Paxton and Braeden; and mother, Rita Gilbert.
Memorials to Gilbert’s Gridiron Scholarship Fund can be mailed or taken to the Burleson Area Chamber of Commerce, 1044 S.W. Wilshire Blvd. in Burleson.

Burleson has proclaimed its love for Keith Gilbert, a long-time coach stricken with inoperable esophageal cancer. Mayor Ken Shetter read a proclamation Jan. 26 during halftime of a Burleson High School basketball game, designating the day Keith Gilbert Day. A new scholarship program, Gilbert’s Gridiron, was established for Burleson High School students in the coach’s honor.  Gilbert was diagnosed with Stage 4 esophageal cancer in October. Doctors determined that it was inoperable.  The city’s proclamation said Gilbert has been a vital part of the local school system for more than 25 years.  “Throughout the years, Keith has extended dedicated services to the youth of our community, not only in the capacity of an instructor, but also by being there as a friend and counselor to hundreds of young people,” Shetter said. “Keith has earned the admiration and highest regard of the people with whom he has come in contact, and the affection of his friends and family,” Shetter added. Shetter urged all Burleson residents to celebrate Gilbert’s special day by contributing to the Gilbert’s Gridiron scholarship fund.