John Kelly Lane

1951 - 2021

John Kelly Lane

John Kelly Lane lived a life dedicated to touching the future through his many years working in education. Kelly Lane passed away Friday, December 17, 2021 surrounded by family in Albany, Oregon. He was the first-born son of Patricia Lane and Thomas Lane, born April 26, 1951 in Rapid City, SD. As the eldest of seven children, Kelly loved spending time with family and grew up an active member of the Boy Scouts, the Catholic church, and various sports teams. Some of Kelly's favorite memories come from his time at the family cabin in Silver City, SD. Kelly attended high school at the Rapid City Catholic High School and was a member of the 'almost' class of 1969. He graduated from Holy Cross Abbey, Canon City, CO.

Kelly loved learning and always said that he was "filled with insatiable curiosity." He graduated with a degree in Education from Black Hills State University. In K-12 education, Kelly found his true calling. Kelly taught middle school science at Douglas School District in Box Elder, SD for 17 years. He began collaborating with NASA in the early days of Global Information Systems (GIS) and developed programs to get students engaged in GIS technology. The NASA South Dakota Space Grant Consortium named a grant after Kelly that is still awarded to SD teachers, the Kelly Lane Earth and Space Science Grant, "in recognition of his lifelong contributions to the teaching of earth sciences, his pioneering efforts to teach technology in the classroom, and his advancement of geospatial applications in the state." He received the prestigious Presidential Award for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching in 1999. He stayed active in the Boy Scouts, leading a local troop and working at Scouting camps. He was the Director of the Medicine Mountain Boy Scout Camp with Wally Jones for four summers.

Kelly married Rebecca Jean Cole in 1983 in Rapid City, SD. They had twin daughters, M. Kelsey and Ingrid. Kelly was a devoted father and spouse. He volunteered with everything Kelsey and Ingrid did, from coaching soccer teams to Odyssey of the Mind teams to chaperoning summer music camps for ten years at the Black Hills String Camp. Kelly was especially proud of his daughters' musical careers with the Black Hills Suzuki program. He said, "My greatest achievement that has given me the most personal satisfaction is my children."

Kelly was an avid outdoorsman and enjoyed paddling, skiing, hiking, backpacking, biking, and climbing. He is considered one of the founding members of the Black Hills whitewater paddling community and introduced many local paddlers to kayaking. He was a primary contributor and editor for the local paddling guidebook, A Paddler's Guide to the Streams and Lakes of the Black Hills, with Justin Herreman and Mike Ray.

Kelly was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 1994. He and Becky were active members of the community of Parkinson's disease patients in the Black Hills. Kelly helped found the KB Balance Trainer company with B'Jo Schreier and was involved in many exercise classes specifically designed for people with Parkinson's.

In retirement, Kelly and Becky loved to travel. They drove their camper van all over North America from the Canadian Maritimes to the Florida Keys to the San Juan Islands to the Canyonlands. Even though Kelly was in a wheelchair, they toured Ireland with their family, took an Alaskan cruise and visited family all over the United States. Kelly and Becky moved to Oregon to be closer to family in March of 2021.

Reflecting on his life, Kelly said, "Between Scouts and my years in the science classroom, I have so many young people coming back to me to say they still remember what they learned. 'To touch the future' is a good way to make a difference." Kelly is survived by spouse Becky, daughter Kelsey Lane and son-in-law Ryan Loftus of Albany, OR, and daughter Ingrid Lane and fiancé Louis Scuderi of Albuquerque, NM. He is also survived by siblings Tim Lane, Mary (Joe) McElroy, Michaela (Rick) Duprey, Father Brian Lane, and Jim Lane. He is preceded in death by parents Pat and Tom Lane and sister Bridget (survived by Robb) Hansen. Memorial services will be held on Monday, June 20, 2022, in Silver City, SD. Kelly will be laid to rest at the Silver City Cemetery with a celebration of his life held at Silver City Schoolhouse at 11:00 am. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating in Kelly's name to the Parkinson's Association of the Rockies.