A celebration of life will held Saturday, May 10, at Martin United Methodist Church, 969 E. Allegan St., for Ronda Kelly, who died April 12 at her home in Martin.
Visitation will begin at 10 a.m. and the service will follow at 11. There will be a luncheon after the service.
A 1987 graduate of Martin High School, She was 56. She was born Feb. 2, 1969, in Kalamazoo, to the late John and Jerilyn (Allerton) Holt.
On Jan. 22, 1989, she went on her first date with Michael Kelly who instantly knew he wanted to marry Ronda. The couple married later that year and welcomed their first child into the world shortly after.
Ronda was a loving mother. She wanted a boy so badly when she learned she was going to be a grandma, so when Stryker was born, he meant the world to her. However, he too learned very quickly that he would have to share her with others.
Ronda loved her church family and the food pantry run by the church. She volunteered for both the food pantry and the Martin area resource center. That, however, was just the tip of the spear when it came to her desire to help. Ronda genuinely cared, and it didn’t matter if she knew you or not.
Always on the go, Ronda was constantly looking for ways she could help anywhere she went, and help she did. One night she was bringing home dinner, but arrived home empty handed. She informed Mike that she came across an accident on the highway and had seen two toddlers standing with their mother on the shoulder of the road. Ronda thought they might be cold, so she stopped and took the kids and their mother to the van to stay warm. She decided the kids needed dinner more than her and Mike, so she gave the food to the kids and calmed them down while they ate.
Ronda’s giving hand and heart didn’t just help people though… Any animal in need of help, also received her attention, care, and assistance.
Ronda carried out all of these selfless acts while enduring pain caused by the 30 plus years of multiple health issues and without complaint. Ronda spent so much time in hospitals, that she befriended most of the people taking care of her. She was so memorable and special to those caregivers that many of them have personally reached out to Mike and the family since her passing to show their care and love for her.
She made a lasting impression on everyone she came in contact with. Even after her cancer diagnosis, her primary concern was how everyone else was doing.
Survivors include her husband of 36 years, Mike Kelly; children, Dustin and Tara (Michael Heers) Kelly; grandchildren, Stryker, Emmett, and Zoey Heers; siblings, Tammy (Gary) Hudson, John (Kim) Holt, and Jason Gabos; mother-in-law, Phyllis Kelly; sister-in-law, Tracy Kelly; brother-in-law, Robert Kelly; and numerous nieces, nephews, other relatives, and friends.
Ronda was preceded in death by her father, John (Sharron) Holt; mother, Jerilyn (Pete) Gabos; mother-in-law, Roberta (Glenn) Drake; and father-in-law, Michael Kelly.Memorial contributions may be given to Wings of Hope Hospice.
