Since 2012, he has served low-income clients as an advocate in areas of civil law such as employment, immigration and landlord-tenant disputes. He pioneered the legal aid position and raised money to make the job a reality.

“We’re trying to get low-income people access to justice in a way that’s efficient and beneficial,” he said.

An Abilene native, McKeever attended Baylor University and volunteered with Mission Waco before graduating in 2001. He worked in various urban ministries and earned a degree from Princeton Theological Seminary before the idea of going to law school even occurred to him.

“I continued to see so many needs in the people I was serving, and so many came back to the need for legal services, justice and advocacy,” he said. “Going back to law school was a natural extension for me.”

McKeever earned a law degree from Vanderbilt University, then moved back to Waco with his wife and three children in 2012. He created the legal advocacy position he holds and for the first year and a half raised all of the money for his salary and operations.