ELEANOR CLARK KELLEY Passed away on Thursday the 2nd of March, 2017, at her residence in Nashville, Tennessee, at the age of 86. Preceded in death by her parents, Mamie Craig Wills Crook and Clinton Pennington Clark (“Ted”), and by her brother, George Crook Sr., all of Nashville. She is survived by her husband of 64 years, Everett E. Kelley; sister, Phoebe Nischan (Marvin); and sister-in-law, Em Crook, all of Nashville; sister-in-law, Shirley Boone of Asheville, NC; and by her six children: Craig Adkisson (Ken) of Franklin, TN; Josephine Darwin (John) of Nashville; Phoebe Kruger (Stephen) of Jackson, Mississippi; Alton Kelley (Sheree), Jessie Durham, and Ed Kelley, all of Nashville. Eleanor is also survived by 14 grandchildren, and 2 great grandsons. Born in 1930 in Nashville, Eleanor attended the high school department of Ward-Belmont School in Nashville; Jackson High School in Jackson, TN; and Holton-Arms Junior College in Washington, D.C. Mrs. Kelley’s family has deep roots in the Nashville area: her maternal grandfather, William Ridley Wills of Nashville, was one of the founders of the National Life and Accident Insurance Company (now part of American General), and her paternal grandmother, Phebe Eastgate Clark of Nashville, was the one of the first female presidents of a U.S. railroad. Eleanor married Everett Kelley in 1952 on one of the hottest days of record in Nashville. She made a wonderful, fun, and loving home for her husband and children in Nashville and at their Brentwood farm. The Kelleys moved to Flowood, MS, to be closer to two daughters there from 1998 until 2006, then to Franklin, TN, and finally returned to Nashville in 2014. She was very creative, followed national politics, and loved being active and outdoors. Once her six children were grown, she and her husband became world travelers who especially enjoyed Alaska, Costa Rica and the Virgin Islands. Her special interests were in the beauty of nature and wildlife and in enjoying long walks. Eleanor was very fond of friends she made at Hillmeade garden club and at her water aerobics class at the Flowood (MS) Family YMCA. Eleanor Kelley was a founder of the Hillmeade Garden Club, and a member of the Junior League of Nashville, where she was an active volunteer at the old Junior League Crippled Children’s Home. With the help of her late devoted friend, Ann Harris Bishop, she was a Meals-on-Wheels volunteer, and a long-time member of Harpeth Presbyterian Church in Brentwood. Visitation with the family will be held on Friday, the 10th of March, 2017, at the home of her son, Alton Kelley, 637 Belle Park Circle, Nashville, TN 37205, from 4pm-6pm. Private family graveside services will be held at Mount Olivet Cemetery in Nashville at a later date. Memorial contributions may be made to The World Wildlife Fund, P.O. Box 97180, Washington, DC 20090-7180, or to Overbrook School, 4210 Harding Pike, Nashville, TN 37205. Online condolences may be made at www.mountolivet.com
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