Michael Doyle Kelley

Michael Doyle Kelley passed away peacefully at his home in Ventura on February 6, 2026. He was 79.

Michael was born in Ventura on October 30, 1946, the only child of Doyle Gene Kelley and Dortha Jean Hays. He grew up in Ventura, attended Pierpont Elementary School and Lincoln School, and graduated from Oxnard High School in 1964. Ventura was not just his hometown; it was the harbor his life would circle back to again and again.

Drafted into the U.S. Army, Michael served with K Troop, 3rd Squadron of the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, completing a tour in Vietnam from 1967 to 1968. After his discharge, the sea called him back, and he worked in commercial fishing before beginning a lifelong career on and around boats.

Michael's working life read like a love letter to the waterfront. He joined the Ventura Harbor Patrol, where his calm competence and courage earned him a letter of praise from then-Governor Ronald Reagan for saving the life of a drowning man. He went on to become Ventura Harbor Master, a role that fit him as naturally as salt air and sun-worn docks.

Never one to stay still for long, Michael bought a 44-foot wooden sailboat named Wayward Wind and moved aboard, embracing harbor life to its fullest. He co-founded the Bosun's Shop with Bob Mobley; worked for Lou Nagy's Matrix Marine at Bates Boatyard, building Fred Bingham's Allegra 24; worked as dockmaster at Dana West Marina; operated Ventura Harbor Boatyard for a time, and along the way worked on special projects with television producer Ron Weed, including jobs connected to Dick Clark Productions. During this time, Michael started and ran his own business, Ventura Rigging, earning the nickname "Mr. Rigger."

Michael's hands were always busy, and his craftsmanship was legendary. He developed a passion for building radio-controlled model boats, a pursuit that perfectly matched his patience, precision, and eye for detail. In 2002, he was awarded Model of the Year by the Ventura County Maritime Museum Model Guild for his Malabar I Schooner, which he described to the Los Angeles Times as "art you can play with." He later purchased Bates Boatyard, transforming it into a dry-dock storage facility while launching an online business, pondboats.com, where he built exquisite model sailboats and steamboats. His work found homes as far away as the East Coast and England, admired by collectors who recognized the care and skill in every piece.

Through it all, Michael remained humble, kind, and quietly funny-a man who preferred letting his work speak for itself. He was steady in a storm, generous with his knowledge, and deeply rooted in the harbor community he loved.

Michael is survived by his longtime partner, Diana Deal of Ventura, California; his son, Sean Michael Kelley (Tracey) of Alcoa, Tennessee; his stepdaughter, Elisabeth Hanrieder (Scott Wright) of Newbury Park, California; his stepson, Michael Josef Hanrieder of Kalispell, Montana; grandchildren Morgan Kelley of Kingston, Tennessee; Payton Kelley of Morristown, Tennessee; Logan Kelley of Kingston, Tennessee; Finn Hanrieder of Kalispell, Montana; Caitlin English of Boston, Massachusetts; and two great-grandsons, "Chuck" and Milo.

Michael's spirit will be felt wherever there is a well-built boat, a quiet harbor morning, or a simple, honest answer to the question of how things are going: "Not too bad for an old guy."

Arrangements are under the direction of the JOSEPH P. REARDON FUNERAL HOME & CREMATION SERVICE, Ventura.