Howard L. Kelly, Stormed Utah Beach In World War II, Dies At 92

Courtesy of Mastapeter Funeral Home:

Howard L. Kelly, 92, of Bayville passed away on February 8, 2016.

He was born and raised in Jersey City before moving to Bayville in 1973.

Howard proudly served his country in the US Army during WWII. On D-Day, June 6, 1942 he was part of the allied invasion on Normandy, landing on Utah Beach. He continued his life of service as a Jersey City firefighter for the next 31 years.

He played trombone in high school which led to him later performing Big Band music in New York and New Jersey. He took pride in his vegetable garden and his amazing tomatoes, which he would freely share with his family and friends. He also served as captain of the Sonata Bay Bocce Ball team.

Howard is predeceased by his beloved wife of over 50 years, Claire in 2001 and his nephews Marty and Paul. Surviving are his sister Evelyn Mueller; three children, Patricia Kelly and husband Gordon Millar, Alan Kelly and wife Laureen and Karen Calabrese and husband Michael; five grandchildren, Jennifer, John, Ryan, Kayla and David; three great-grandchildren, Greyson, Cameron and Rhys; and his nieces and nephews, Paul, James, Thomas, Brian, Mary Ellen, Nancy, Doreen and Claire.

Visitation will be from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Monday, February 15, 2016 at the Mastapeter Funeral Home, 270 Atlantic City Blvd. Bayville, NJ 08721. Funeral services will be held at 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday in the funeral home before celebrating a 9:30 a.m. Funeral Mass at St. Barnabas Church in Bayville. Entombment will follow to Ocean County Memorial Park in Toms River.

In lieu of flowers donations in Howard’s name made to the Popcorn Park Zoo, 1 Humane Way P.O. Box 43, Forked River, NJ 08731-0043 or online at www.ashcares.org. For more information please go to www.mastapeterfuneralhome.com.