Robert Joseph Kelly

Robert (Bob) Joseph Kelly, 79, died peacefully on June 8, 2025, after entering hospice care in April. Born June 2, 1946, in Brooklyn, NY, Bob was very proud of his beginnings and carried his love for Brooklyn in his heart all his life. Bob attended the Catholic Parish School, the Jesuit high school Brooklyn Prep, and received his undergraduate degree from St. Anselm’s College in Manchester, New Hampshire. Having a Catholic education was sacred to him and eventually brought him to his true calling as a teacher.

Bob joined the Air Force at the beginning of the Vietnam War and proudly served in Air Force Intelligence for four years in West Berlin and Turkey as a Russian Linguist. It was through his service in the military he obtained his bachelor's degree.

Upon graduating from St. Anselm’s, Bob moved with his family to Phoenix in 1974, with the intention of furthering his education, a plan which was placed on the back burner while he worked at various employments to support his family, including as a journalist for the Tempe Daily News and the Sun City Citizen. He seized the opportunity to join the faculty at St. Mary’s High School in 1984, where he remained for almost 30 years. It was at St. Mary’s where Bob flourished and became the Teacher Extraordinaire most remember him to be. Throughout his storied career, he served as Dean of Students, Head Coach of the golf team, and Campus Minister to name but a few official roles. Bob was a mentor, friend, and resident theologian to students, faculty, and staff and beloved by a great many. While at St. Mary’s, Bob earned his master's in theology from the University of San Francisco. Always an advocate for continuing education, he also pursued opportunities offered by the National Endowment for the Arts.

Shortly after his retirement from St. Mary’s, Bob suffered a severe stroke which left him with residual challenges. Determined to not allow his physical limitation to hinder his zeal for life and his quest for knowledge for himself and others, he chose to continue teaching through his Facebook page, which enabled him to maintain deep, abiding relationships with many St. Mary’s High School alumni, as well as former colleagues. Bob’s dry Irish wit and desire to share his deep respect for the dignity of all lives, the history and laws in the U.S. and abroad and, of course, religious studies, were frequent topics addressed and debated, always respectfully.

Bob never forgot his Brooklyn roots and made frequent trips to New York for family visits. In most recent years his home base in New York was the Motherhouse of the Congregation of The Sisters of The Infant Jesus where his birth sister lived. He remained an avid sports fan, especially baseball- even after the Brooklyn Dodgers broke his heart by leaving his hometown- rooting for the Mets, the Suns, the Knicks and the 49’ers. He was a voracious reader, and his collection of literature was vast. Bob loved movies, especially the Classics, and he shared that affection with his students both in and outside the classroom. Always the performer, he acted in a stage production of “To Kill a Mockingbird” alongside one of his granddaughters. He appeared in two films directed by his son-in-law, playing a retired grandfather who had suffered a stroke and, to no one’s surprise, a priest. Bob was a true Renaissance man.

Bob is survived by his wife, Barbara; children, Cecilia (Scott), Ruth (Gary), Johnathan (Clarissa) and Jennifer (Ryan); eight grandchildren; his sister, Sr. MaryLouise Kelly; nephews Christopher (Julie) and Michael (Ali); two grandnieces, numerous cousins, and more friends than could ever be counted. He was preceded in death by his parents, Harold and Mary, and his older brother Harold.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held Thursday, June 12, 2025, at St. Francis Xavier in central Phoenix, with a closed casket visitation at 9:30am, funeral Mass at 10:00am, and reception immediately following at Saint Mary’s High School, 2525 N 3rd St, Phoenix, 85004. All are welcome to attend.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the religious order Sisters of the Congregation of the Infant Jesus, Rockville Center, NY, who took wonderful care of him throughout his life, and Hospice of the Valley, who cared for him at the end of his earthly journey.