Dick Keffer, longtime car dealer, dies at 82

Dick Keffer, owner of the auto group that operates dealerships in Charlotte and elsewhere on the East Coast, died Friday morning in Fernandina Beach, Fla. He was 82.

Born on Feb. 27, 1933, Keffer got his start in car-selling in Pennsylvania in 1961. He worked his way up from managing dealerships to operating over a dozen of his own along the East Coast. Keffer opened his first Charlotte dealership in 1974.

Keffer Auto Group operates or partially owns eight Charlotte-area dealerships representing makes including Volkswagen, Hyundai, Kia and Mazda, according to its website. The group operates its flagship location, Keffer Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram, on Independence Boulevard.

Keffer was known for helping employees advance in ranks through the business no matter their race or sex. “I don’t care if you’re black, white, purple, male, or female,” Keffer told Greater Charlotte Biz magazine in a 2011 profile. “All I care about is whether you can perform.”

The local businessman also helped other area car dealers with funding and operations in their early years, then later had them buy him out in order to operate independently.

Keffer has funded South Park Rotary’s annual “Beach Blast” trips that send disadvantaged schoolchildren to the beach for the last 27 years. He also was a longtime booster of Charlotte Catholic High School, from which his five children all graduated and whose stadium bears his name.

He worked all the way up until the time of his death, said Keffer Management President Bonnie Hunter, whom Keffer hired in 1966.

“He wasn’t thinking about retiring. It wasn’t in his vocabulary,” Hunter said.

Keffer moved to Florida almost 10 years ago, Hunter said. The cause of his death wasn’t immediately announced.

“We expect no changes in the day to day operations of our stores,” Hunter said.

Keffer’s wife Connie died in June 2014. Keffer is survived by five children: Jim, Rick, Mike, Karen (Baucom) and Anne (Flanigan) as well as 13 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

A viewing will take place Oct. 1 at St. Gabriel’s Church and the funeral will take place on Oct. 2 at the same place, Hunter said. Keffer will be buried on Oct. 3 in Pennsylvania, where is wife is also buried.

This story was originally published September 25, 2015 at 3:15 PM with the headline "Dick Keffer, longtime car dealer, dies at 82."