Robert Long Kelley

Dr. Robert "Bob" Long Kelley (1929 - 2024), formerly of Wellesley, Massachusetts died on Saturday, November 9th at Lasell Village in Newton, surrounded by his family. The son of a commissioned Navy Doctor during World War II, Bob's early years were spent between military bases in Hawaii, California, Oregon, and Guam. Bob saw the war firsthand, from witnessing the Attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, to hearing the original proclamation of the Marshall Plan at the Harvard College graduation ceremony in 1947.

Born in Boston on April 7th, 1929, Bob returned to his roots and graduated from Boston College High School (1946) and Harvard College (1950). Following graduation, six months of executive training in the chemical industry convinced Bob that he wanted to be a physician as was his father and grandfather, and in 1954, he graduated from Boston University School of Medicine. But most importantly, it was during medical school that Bob met his future wife, Diana Charleson, during a chance encounter on the stoop of the Beacon Street brownstone where they both lived.

After a psychiatric residency at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City, Bob served as Chief Psychiatrist at the Army's helicopter school in Mineral Wells, Texas, achieving the rank of Sergeant in the U.S. Marine Corps and Captain in the Army. During this time, Bob enjoyed learning to fly planes, despite one crash landing in a crop field. Returning again to the Boston area, Bob and his family first lived in Lexington before moving to Wellesley in 1964.

Bob's professional career had many highlights. He was a Clinical Assistant in Psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital, Chief of Psychiatry at the Waltham-Weston Hospital and was on the staff of both the Newton Wellesley and Emerson Hospitals. Additionally, he treated countless patients in his private practice. While caring for patients was his passion, Bob proudly contributed to academic textbooks on psychiatry. Whether with his patients or with friends and family, Bob loved to give advice, often preceded by the words "Trust me, I'm a doctor," and with a reference to a favorite quote from Bartlett's Familiar Quotations or a parable from his many lived experiences. His advice, while always appreciated by those lucky enough to receive it, was not always followed, with the result becoming a "learning experience."

Bob loved spending time with his family, including sailing across the English Channel and exploring the canals of Northern Europe on his boat Panacea (a cure-all), deer hunting, skiing at Stratton Mountain, and playing tennis and golf at Wellesley Country Club. "Pops" to his grandchildren, was a staunch supporter of whatever activity or sport pursued by any of his ten grandchildren, from attending football games and plays, to mentoring one Eagle Scout.

Despite diminished eyesight later in his life, he reigned as the family's bridge champion and won more chess games than he lost. A lifelong learner and always inquisitive, when Bob moved from Wellesley to Lasell Village, he quickly immersed himself in that community. Many hours were spent painting maritime scenes, baking bread for friends, and even becoming a Teaching Assistant for a ceramics class.

Bob was predeceased by Diana in 2023, his wife of 68 years, and is survived by their five children: Sharon, Gail, Bruce, Maureen, and Craig, and ten grandchildren.

There will be a Memorial Service on Saturday, December 14th at 2:00 PM at St. Mary's Episcopal Church, 258 Concord St, Newton, MA to celebrate the life and legacy of this great man.