Obituary of JoAnn R. Kelley

JoAnn Kelley, 95, of Binghamton, went to be with her loved ones in Heaven on Thursday, February 16, 2023. She was predeceased by her husband of 52 years, James (Jim) J. Kelley; infant son, Andrew; parents, William and Louise Ready; and her sister Roberta Allen. She is survived by her children, Jerrold (Candice) Kelley of Texas, Dennis (Heidi) Kelley of Vestal, William Kelley of Binghamton, John (Debra) Kelley of Pennsylvania, Vince (Anne) Kelley of Virginia, Karen (Daniel) Whelan of Binghamton, Patricia (Andrew) Jones of Endwell, Christine Kelley of Maryland, and Louise Kelley of Florida. Additionally, she is survived by 27 grandchildren: Erin, Megan, James, David, Stephanie, Mac, Cooper, Colton, Nadine, Daniel, Theresa, Michael, Thomas J., Ashlyn, Margaret, Kaitlin, Molly, Allison, Emily, Kelly, Kevin, Robert, Stephen, Thomas A., McKenna, Gillian, and Evan. She is also survived by 15 great-grandchildren: Mason, Zoe, Dora, Thomas, Lara, Max, Violet, Ya'ari, Calvin, Samantha, Issan, Max, Samuel, Rosalie and Beatrice. In addition, JoAnn is survived by numerous nephews, nieces, cousins, and one very special niece, Kathi Wilson. JoAnn grew up as an Army brat, crisscrossing the country with her family in support of her father, a decorated Army Air Corps pilot. In 1945, JoAnn and Jim met at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, where her father, a B-17 pilot, and Jim, a B-29 navigator, were stationed. After the war, she and Jim married and returned to his hometown of Binghamton. They were parishioners at St. Thomas Aquinas Church for the rest of their lives. JoAnn spent many great years with her family, church friends, military friends, and work friends from Binghamton Central High School, where she worked for 18 years. She was very active with the Southern Tier chapter of the Military Officers Association of America. JoAnn and Jim also spent many years traveling and sharing experiences with their cousins, Bud and Barbara Smith. JoAnn's other loves were watching the Yankees, reading, crosswords, traveling, Disney World, and a good martini on Thursdays with her sister. She was a loving wife, daughter, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. The family would like to give a special thank you to all of JoAnn's in home help who allowed her stay in her home until the end. Thank you, Peggy, Amber, Maria, Geri, Svetlana, and granddaughter Emily. A Funeral Mass will be offered at St. Thomas Aquinas Church, Highland Avenue, Binghamton, Thursday, April 20, 2023 at 12 noon. Burial will be in St. Patrick's Cemetery, Johnson City. The family will receive friends at St. Thomas Aquinas Church, April 20, 2023 from 11 a.m. until 12 noon. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to either the Broome County Humane Society or the Tunnels to Towers Foundation (https://t2t.org). The Mass will be livestreamed at tinyurl.com/12w5eun or by going to https://sta-sp.org/