Emmett Keith Inskeep, a native West Virginian who grew up in a diversified livestock farm in Medley, passed away on Aug. 5th, 2021.
Born Jan. 11, 1938, at 12 Myrtle Ave., in Petersburg, he was the son of the late Emmett VanMeter and June Marie Clower Inskeep.
He is survived by his wife of more than 60 years, Ansusan Presby Inskeep, of Morgantown; their sons, Todd Keith Inskeep (Deborah) and grandchildren Jennifer, Michelle and Todd James, of Charlotte N.C., and Thomas Clower Inskeep (Rhonda) and grandchildren Olivia, Gayle and Margaret Claire, of Ellicott City, M.D.; his brother, John Carter Inskeep (Deborah); sisters, Betty June Inskeep and Ellen Jane Inskeep (Larry); sister-in-law, Retta Presby Weaver; and many cousins, nieces and nephews and their families.
Keith grew up on the family farms at Medley and Martin, helping his mother (a revered elementary teacher) and grandmother with gardening and food processing and his father and uncle, William Inskeep, with their multiple farm enterprises. He was especially involved in planting and cultivating corn, harvesting hay and grain crops, milking cows and all aspects of raising chickens and ranged turkeys. He was active in 4-H Club, where he learned to shear sheep and became a West Virginia 4-H All Star. He attended the one-room school in Medley for five years and earned the Golden Horseshoe in West Virginia History in eighth grade at Petersburg High School, where he was Salutatorian of the Class of 1955.
Keith completed an A.A. degree in agriculture at Potomac State College (’57) and a B.S. in dairy science at West Virginia University (’59). He earned an M.S. in genetics (’60) and a Ph.D. in endocrinology (’64) at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. Keith returned to WVU as an assistant professor in the College of Agriculture and Forestry in August of 1964 and spent his entire teaching and research career as an animal husbandman and reproductive physiologist at WVU. He was an original member of the interdisciplinary Faculty of Reproductive Physiology formed in 1965 and served as its volunteer chair until his retirement as professor emeritus in December of 2016.
During his tenure, Keith developed new courses in endocrinology of reproduction and current literature in animal science and taught a variety of courses in animal production and management. He did research with cattle and sheep, much of it at WVU’s Reedsville and Wardensville farms and in cooperation with producers on their farms. He guided graduate students from throughout the U.S. and from several foreign countries. Their successes and research papers gave him an international reputation in reproductive physiology and management of ruminant livestock. He received the L.E. Casida Award for Excellence in Graduate Education from the American Society of Animal Science in 1999.
Keith was a co-author of, and participated in, the Allegheny Highlands Project in the 1970s, promoting improvements in ruminant production systems in nine West Virginia counties. From 1975 to the early 1990s, he participated in an exchange program with Spain, and he traveled to speak and consult in several other countries. In 1985, he and Dr. Robert Baker successfully transferred embryos into cows without ovaries that subsequently calved in February of 1986. He received the WVU Benedum Award for Distinguished Research in Biomedical Sciences in 1996 and a USDA Superior Performance in Research Award in 1999. From 1998-2015, he participated in the Small Ruminant Development Project that stopped the decline in sheep numbers in West Virginia. He guided research that led to FDA approval of systems to deliver hormones to induce out-of-season breeding in sheep. His research had global impact and is widely used today.
He was named a fellow of the American Society of Animal Science in 1998 and received their Retiree Distinguished Service Award in 2019. He served as president of the Society for the Study of Reproduction in 1992-1993 and received its Distinguished Service Award in 2003. Keith was a Distinguished Alumnus of Potomac State College (2006) and was inscribed on the Duke Anthony Whitmore/Henry Louis Gates Jr. Academic Achievement Wall there (2010). In 2007, he was named to the Hall of Honor at Petersburg High School and enshrined in the West Virginia Agriculture and Forestry Hall of Fame.
After retirement in 2016, Keith continued to interact with faculty and graduate students in animal sciences at WVU and Penn State to review research papers for journals and to answer questions from sheep and beef producers. He gardened with his neighbor, Gina Buckhalter, spent more time restoring fences and pastures on his portion of the family farm at Medley and helped his son, Thomas, raise hemp there. There was always venison and lamb in his freezer, and he loved to fish when he had the chance. His greatest pride was in the accomplishments of his wife, children, grandchildren and students.
Keith’s favorite charity was the Three Little Pigs Scholarship Fund in the WVU Foundation. It was formed in 1987 after he helped students raise funds for agricultural flood relief in 1986 by obtaining a donation of three slaughter pigs from cooperating farmers Ben and Pearle Abicht, of Eureka. Students allocated the funds to repair 4-H camps in Pendleton and Summers Counties and a farmer’s tractor in Tucker County. The Abichts started the fund to support West Virginia students with need in the Ag College. It now supports as many as 20 students each year.
Family and friends may join to honor Keith’s wonderful life and legacy at Smith Funeral & Cremation Care, 108 Holland Ave., Westover/Morgantown, from 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., Monday, Aug. 9. At 1 p.m., an intimate service for immediate family and close friends will be held. The service will be live streamed via the funeral home’s Facebook page.
Everyone in attendance will be required to wear a face covering while inside the funeral home.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Three Little Pigs Scholarship Fund in the WVU Foundation (donations can be made online at https://give.wvu.edu/davis scroll down to the Three Little Pigs Scholarship at the bottom of the page).
Condolences:
www.smithfcc.com
