Joan Kelly

1930 - 2015

Joan Katherine Kelly

June 7, 1930 - September 20, 2015

Joan Katherine Kelly was a native of San Francisco and longtime resident of Los Altos, CA. A dazzling presence, her humor, style, and gift for storytelling are unmatched. Her adoring family and many friends are blessed to have known her and will miss her deeply and always.

She grew up in the Mission District, the devoted daughter of the late Emma and Jack Crilley and granddaughter of the late Marie Johnson. She attended St. Charles grammar school (and wore her class ring all her life), St. Peter's High School and Heald's Business College. Jobs at The City of Paris and Cadillac Motors (as "Miss Cadillac") and part-time modeling were highlights of her single years. In 1956, she married Joseph V. Kelly, and devoted herself to family, settling in Foster City and then Los Altos. Uniquely tolerant of chaos, she encouraged her children's interests - staging shows in the yard, teaching ballet in the kitchen, restoring cars in the garage - and her easy rapport made home a magnet for their friends. Later, as a young widow, she pursued her talent in watercolor painting and became an ESL teaching assistant at Sunnyvale Middle School, where her tough but patient attention endeared her to students. Proud of her Irish and Latvian roots, she visited both countries and a host of others with her daughter Lynette, whom she visited often in New York City. She loved singing, dancing, theatre, Old Fashioned cocktails, dessert and a hearty laugh. Always the life of the party, she was the light in our lives, the smile on our faces, the love in our hearts.

She is survived by her children, Lynette Kelly (Kim Hogg), Jan Rogers (Bob), John Kelly (Marie); her grandchildren, Joey and Elena Kelly, Anna and Lizzie Rogers; goddaughter Ellie Puls; nieces Pat and Sue Keller; and many dear cousins and friends. Her husband, Joseph V. Kelly, and her daughter Nanette predeceased her.

A funeral Mass will be held on Monday, September 28, 2015, at 11:00 a.m. at St. Nicholas Church, 473 Lincoln Ave., Los Altos. A vigil will be held on Sunday, September 27, 2015, 5 - 8 p.m., Rosary at 7 p.m., at Spangler Mortuary, Los Altos Chapel, 399 South San Antonio Road, Los Altos.