Peter Vincent Kelly

Peter Vincent Kelly performed his final Irish Goodbye on January 23, 2023. After a battle with cancer, he passed away peacefully at home in the presence of loved ones. In his final days, he kept his sense of humor and was cracking jokes until the end. Pete was born on June 12, 1950 in Berkeley, CA and would go on to spend the first 50 years of his life in the Bay Area. He spent his 50’s and early 60’s in Plymouth, MA before returning to California in 2014. Over the years, Pete’s adventures ranged from exploring the tiny towns of Northern California on weekend trips (and finding dangerous bridges to jump off there), playing NCAA basketball (and losing to UNLV after staying up all night watching back to back shows of Redd Foxx and Tina Turner), going to the Rolling Stones fiasco at Altamont (but leaving early), appearing in a movie as James Cromwell’s stand-in, being satirized in a cartoon by a local newspaper, earning the nickname “roller” from his friends, seeing the Beatles’ last show (or at least listening to it outside the stadium without paying), visiting Brazil, Denmark, and the Philippines while playing basketball, traveling to 49 states (but deciding that 50th wasn’t worth the trip), learning the card game “Asshole” in his 50’s, and celebrating his second wedding with a triumphant keg stand at the age of 55. Pete will be survived by his loving significant other, Sidsel, with whom he was so grateful to share his final years. Pete will be missed by his brothers Joe (Barb) and Bernie (Mary), his sister Jane (Daniel); by his kids, Bridget (MarkAnthony), Kevin (Katherine), Michelle (Michael), David (Caryn), and Jamie (Kelly); and by enough wonderful nieces, nephews, grandnieces, and grandnephews that he couldn’t keep track of how many there were. About fifteen years before he passed away, Pete was the recipient of a heart and kidney transplant. He never learned who the donor was or anything about the donor’s family, but he always appreciated the gift he received from them. That donation granted him fifteen more years, allowing him to see the weddings of his children and, most importantly, to know and love his wonderful grandchildren, Caileigh, Dominic, and Rodney. He had a special bond with each of them and many of the happiest times of his life were spent making Caileigh giggle with his goofiness, coaching Dominic at baseball, and receiving as many bear hugs from Rodney as he could handle. Pete’s last wishes were that bad drivers be told to “shit or get off the pot”, for neighbors everywhere to get their dogs to stop barking, for his remote control to just work, for the ingredients of sandwiches to be spread equally on every part of the bread, for the Niners to win the Super Bowl, for the Giants to get their act together, and for his friends and family to know that he loved and appreciated them even when he wanted to head home from their parties early. At this time, no formal memorial is planned, but we invite his loved ones to share any fun stories or memories of Pete in the comments below. In the event that a celebration of life is planned at a later date, we will make sure to let everyone know. Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.neptune-society.com/location/fairfield-ca for the Kelly family.