Peter James "Pete" Kelly

Peter James "Pete" Kelly September 30, 2023
Peter James “Pete” Kelly, 79, of Charlottesville, Virginia, passed away on September 30, 2023, with his wife and friends by his side.

Pete is survived by his wife, Cathy; his sons, Jim and Joe; his daughters-in-law, Chris and Shannan; and his most beloved grandchildren, Peter, Caroline, Alex, and Ashlyn; as well as many dear friends and extended family. Pete was predeceased by Margaret, his wife of 52 years.

Pete was born on November 21, 1943, and he joined the Navy after graduating from Ellenville High School in New York. He spent 22 years in service to his country, starting as a Seaman Recruit, and retiring at the rank of Lieutenant Commander. After retirement, Pete went on to a second career of maintaining the computer and printing systems for the Virginia Pilot newspaper while living in Virginia Beach. He and his new love Cathy moved to Charlottesville in 2018 where they were close to the horse farms of central Virginia, and were embraced as family by many dear friends. Pete loved playing golf, fishing, good scotch, and driving sports cars, especially his Mustang GT.



As a veteran, Pete will be inurned at Arlington National Cemetery, at a date and time to be determined. Memorial donations may be made to Colby’s Horse Rescue in Charlottesville (colbyscrewrescue.org) or to the Wounded Warrior Project (woundedwarriorproject.org).