KELLY, SAMUEL VINTON
Samuel Vinton Kelly, age 81, passed away on November 20th, 2022 with his family by his side. Sam was born on April 25th, 1941 in
Detroit, Michigan to Juanita Joyce (Reece) and Samuel Vinton Kelly. He was the eldest of 6 children; Carol, John (Tim), Rose, Ruth and Philip. Sam grew up in southeast Michigan and joined the Air Force in his teens. He trained as a Russian interpreter, was stationed in Turkey and discharged from Kelly Air Force Base after 4 years of service. Sam loved learning and pursued each educational opportunity to the fullest. He graduated from Oakland University with a Bachelor’s of Science in microbiology and completed a Ph.D. in biochemistry at Wayne State University. He then enjoyed two post-doctoral positions in Baltimore, first at Johns Hopkins in microbiology then at the Carnegie Institute in maize genetics. After a faculty position at the University of Toledo, Sam completed law school at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. Sam knew everything about everything. Many relied on this ability and appreciated his good humor as he tried to bring his deep appreciation of the complex down to an understandable level for the rest of us. Sam enjoyed home and auto repair, gardening, cooking, camping, hiking, reading, a good whiskey and above all, life and talking with others. Samuel will be sorely missed by so many including: his wife, Barbara (Felt), their children,
Elizabeth (Manor) and Samuel and their significant others, Donnie and Carly, and his dear grandson, Liam, with whom he shared devoted time over the last three years; his first wife, Carolyn (Heemer), their daughter, Stefanie Hodgson and her significant other, Jason, as well as his dear grandsons,
Nathaniel and Cooper; his surviving siblings, Ruth and Philip, and in-laws, Don (Main), Teresa, and Gledis; and so many other dear family members and friends. There will be a gathering in Sam’s honor on Sunday, December 11, 2022 from 1-4 p.m. with comments at 2 p.m. at Nie Family Funeral Home, 3767 W. Liberty Rd, Ann Arbor, MI 48103. Donations in Sam’s honor can be sent to Pukaskwa National Park, Ontario Canada. Forms and information will be available at the gathering on Dec 11th. Alternatively, checks can be mailed to: Pukaskwa National Park; PO Box 212; Heron Bay, ON, Canada; P0T 1R0 - or use the email address (PukaskwaONT@pc.gc.ca) with donation as the subject line and a park team member would call and accept the information over the phone. Please visit www.niefuneralhomes.com for the full
obituary and to leave a message for the family.