Dscoop, Industry Mourn Loss of Rod Key

SCOTTSDALE, AZ—Rod Key, a prominent, longtime industry figure who perhaps made his greatest impact as a founder of the HP users group Dscoop, died suddenly Monday at the age of 47.

Born in Derby, England, Mr. Key moved here in 1983. He started R&R Images in 1986 and became one of the first users of digital cameras for commercial photography. R&R Images was acquired by Shutterfly last year.

Chris Petro, Dscoop Global chairman, sent the following message below to Dscoop members:

"On behalf of the Dscoop board of directors, committees and members around the globe, I want to regrettably inform you of the unexpected passing of one our dearest Dscoop family members, Rod Key, from Shutterfly, formally R&R Images. Our hearts, love and prayers go out to his wife Patti, son Austin and all of Rod’s family, friends and colleagues.

"For those in our community who had the honor of meeting or working with Rod, you understand the sense of loss of our dear friend; it is extremely difficult to accept. His commitment to Dscoop was unending and his passion for our industry, our organization and our teams was unwavering. Part of the original board of Dscoop, Rod previously served as North America Conference chair, marketing chair and led countless other successful efforts in our industry. Rod's passion and love for the Dscoop community personifies the essence and strength of what Dscoop is all about. His loss leaves a hole in our community that we will never be able to fill.

"Those of you who have met Rod at our conferences or events know Rod as a driven leader who always was passionate and committed. What we will miss most about Rod is his hard working attitude, infectious smile, laugh and friendship. I personally cannot remember a moment that I spent with Rod that I wasn't smiling, laughing and having a great time!"

Hewlett-Packard, Document Systems Foundation (EDSF) and Arizona State University have established the Rod Key Memorial Scholarship, which will benefit students of the Arizona State University Graphic Communications Program. Rod’s family has asked that all donations be made to the scholarship fund in lieu of flowers.

Jan Riecher, vice president and general manager, Americas Graphics Solutions Business, HP, noted: “In addition to what Rod brought to the industry in his various leadership positions and his contributions as an advisory board member at Dscoop, he was also passionate about education. Rod was an advisor for Arizona State University’s graphic information technology program, which offers students a ‘creative, technological and managerial understanding of graphic communication technology in areas such as Web, print, photography and multimedia.’ As such, we felt that a scholarship in his name at ASU was the most meaningful way to remember him.”

Brenda Kai, EDSF executive director added that, “We are proud to administer this scholarship in honor of one of the industry’s talented leaders. Rod’s legacy will truly live on in the next generation through this scholarship.” The Rod Key Memorial Scholarship will be awarded in July 2014 to an outstanding full-time ASU student committed to pursuing a career in the document management and graphic communications marketplace.

To make a tax deductible donation to the Rod Key Memorial Scholarship fund, please go to www.edsf.org/rodkey. To learn more about this scholarship or to apply, visit here or contact Brenda Kai, EDSF’s executive director, at (817) 849-1145 or via e-mail at brenda.kai@edsf.org.