Sheila Kelley July 29, 1940 - May 26, 2023

Sheila O. Kelley, 82, of Bonita Springs, FL, died peacefully on Friday, May 26, 2023, at her daughter Margaret’s home in Wallingford.

Sheila was born on July 29, 1940, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Sheila was the daughter of the late William Owens and Josephine Cummings.

Sheila married Liam J. Kelley on September 13, 1958. They were married for 63 years until Liam’s death on July 5, 2022.

Sheila and Liam moved to New Haven in 1960 where their three older sons were born: James T. Kelley (Mara), Daniel P. Kelley, and Sean M. Kelley (Arlene). During the summer of 1963, they bought their home in Wallingford where their three younger children were born: Michael R. Kelley ( Jenn), Katherine Kelley-Dwyer ( Joe), and Margaret Kelley-Watson (David).

Sheila worked for Pratt and Whitney as a Quality Control Inspector for 10 years. Sheila’s lifework was being a homemaker for her family. Sheila taught all of her children how to bake apple pie, dumplings, and ginger snaps. Sheila’s passion was teaching her grandkids and great-grandkids the love of baking. Her legacy is being passed down and will continue for generations to come.

Sheila and Liam retired to Naples, FL in 1999, where they met many friends. In 2005, they moved to Bonita Springs, FL, where they enjoyed having their children and grandchildren visit and traveling all over the country in their motor home.

In addition to her children, Sheila is survived by her 16 grandchildren: Victoria Keating, Shannon Kelley, Scott Keating (Alexa),

Graham Kelley (Caroline), Matthew Kelley (Taylor), Audrey Jean-Guillaume (Evan), Thomas Keating (Lindsay), Kaleigh Fornal, Sydney Fornal, Katherine Olson (Tyler), Colleen Kelley, Liam Kelley, Olivia Watson, Joseph Dwyer, Keena Watson, and Elizabeth Gibbs, along with 7 greatgrandchildren, her 4 siblings, Doug Cummings, Barb Wildman, Michael Owens, and Marie Owens Thomsen. Sheila was predeceased by her husband, parents, and grandson, Joseph Keating.

Her family will receive relatives and friends at the Wallingford Funeral Home, 809 N. Main St Ext., on Wednesday, May 31, 2023, from 4-7 pm. Sheila’s funeral services will be held on Thursday, June 1, 2023, at 10:00 am. The funeral cortege will proceed to Our Lady of Fatima Church, 282 Hope Hill Road, Wallingford, where a Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated. Interment will follow in St. John Cemetery in Wallingford. Gifts in her memory may be sent to the Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration, 2700 Horizon Drive Suite 120, King of Prussia, PA, 19406, or the American SIDS Institute, WWW.SIDS.ORG