Allene L. Kelly

Allene Alberta Kelly passed away on August 11, 2025 at the age of 96. Daughter of Peter and Louise Lago, and elder sister to Peter Lago, Jr., Allene was born in New Haven, CT on March 10, 1929. In 1951, she married John Samuel Kelly and settled in Bethany, CT, where she gave birth to four children: Nancy, Shawn, Brian, and Robert. Salutatorian of West Haven High School, class of 1946, she attended New Haven State Teacher's College (now Southern Connecticut State University), where she received her Bachelor of Science, a Master of Arts in Education, and a Master of Communications for the Hearing Impaired. She later attended Lesley College in Cambridge, MA where she received a 6th Year in Computer Science.

Allene began her teaching career in Milford, CT, then taught in Seymour, CT, where she was recognized by Sargent Shriver for instituting one of the first Head Start programs in the nation in the 1960s. She next taught in North Haven, CT, where she established the Special Education Hearing Impaired Program, teaching deaf children how to speak. She was awarded a sabbatical to attend Lesley College and returned to North Haven to set up the first computers in classrooms throughout the school district. After 40 years she retired from teaching and became a licensed stock broker with American Express.

In the 1980s, Allene purchased Billy's Old Fashioned Ice Cream in Bethany, CT and for more than thirty years, in partnership with her son Robert Kelly, made it a famous destination spot featured in Connecticut Magazine. Billy's hand-made ice cream, model train with tracks winding throughout the restaurant, and antique riding toys were a regular favorite of children, young and old.

She was always deeply engaged in her community, serving on the Bethany Democratic Town Committee and regularly attending town meetings for more than seventy years, last quoted in the Bethany Annual Town Meeting minutes in May 2023. She ran for State Representative of the 89th District in the 1970s, and though she didn't win, it was not for lack of knocking on possibly every door in Bethany, Cheshire and Prospect. She never did anything half way!

She loved her plants and was a member of the Bethany Garden Club and a beloved swim group in North Haven. An avid water color artist, she had a showing of her work at the Clark Memorial Library in Bethany in November 2024. She loved acting and singing and was a longtime member of the Amity Players, garnering the leading role of Mei Li in their production of Flower Drum Song.

She has been a member of Our Lady of the Assumption Church parish since the 1950s, singing in the choir for more than sixty years, teaching religious education, and helping with many events and projects. She was a regular attendee in her Small Christian Community group and a member of the Seton Group.



Allene Drive, Hamden, CT was named after her when her father was the construction foreman for a housing development there. She was an avid traveler, crossing the USA several times and visiting England, France, Italy, China, Panama, and Morocco, where she rode a camel in her 80s!

She is survived by her daughter Nancy Kelly of Guilford, CT, son Shawn (Susan) Kelly of Naugatuck, CT, and sister-in-law Phyllis Lago of Punta Gorda, FL; her grandchildren Robert F. (Emily) Kelly of Hohenwald, TN, Jennifer (Jason) Clendenion of Only, TN, Nicholas (Rachel) Frankwich of Oak Harbor, WA, Alexandra Kelly of Scotts Hill, TN, Hillary (Pete) O'Connor of Fulton, MS, Ashley Lago of Guilford, CT, Megan (Matthew) Holmes of Parsons, TN, Peter Kelly of Seattle, WA, John (Maya Thompson) Lago, III of San Diego, CA, and Robert J. Kelly, Jr., of Prospect, CT; her great-grandchildren Sara (Landon) Anthony, Summer and Sabella Kelly, Bailey (Jacob Johnson) and Shelby Clendenion, Jason Duncan, Haylee (Wyatt) Blohm, Levi Carrington, Aiden, Malikai and Kenna Frankwich, Gage and Amelia O'Connor, and Bronson and Jackson Holmes; and her great-great-grandchildren Cashton Anthony and Adam, Fred, and John Blohm. Additionally, she will be missed by her cousins Caroline Horzapa, Janice Hardaswick, Lucille Palmerie, and Ralph Lago; nieces and nephews, Candace (Gordon) Smith, Michael (Janet) Kelly, Kevin (Sandy Sullivan) Kelly, Ronald (Joanne) Kelly, Cheri (Robert) Currie, Scott (Helen) Kelly, Tamara (Vincent) Mursko, Patricia Brereton- (Robert) Johnson, Kathleen (Joseph) Kelemen, Matthew (Lynn) Hagan, Denise (Tom Langlois) Dudek, Marc (Jacqueline) Lago, Monique (Donald) St. Peter, and Michele Lago; as well as many extend family members and friends, and longtime caregivers Cheryl Random and Debi Wagner. She was predeceased by her husband, John Kelly, sons Brian (Mary Ann) Kelly and Robert (Linda Ramcke) Kelly, parents Peter and Louise Lago, brother Peter Lago, Jr., nephew Matthew Lago, cousin John J. Lago, II, and in-laws: parents Albert and Veronica Kelly, siblings Albert and Eileen Kelly, Jr. and James and Eileen Hagan, nephew Edward Brereton, and niece Susan Kelly.

A Mass of Christian Burial will take place at Our Lady of the Assumption Church, 81 Center Road, Woodbridge, CT on Saturday, August 23, 2025 at 11:00 AM. Donations in lieu of flowers may be sent to the American Cancer Society.