HURON — Ruth M. Kelley, age 74, of Huron, gained her wings on Monday, March 18, 2024 at Avera Borman Manor in Parkston.
Her funeral service will be held at 11 a.m., on Friday, March 22, at Faith Alive Community Church in Huron, with burial to follow at Restlawn Memory Gardens Cemetery.
Visitation, with her family present, will be from 5 to 7 p.m., on Thursday, March 21 at Welter Funeral Home in Huron.
“Let me tell you about my mom. Ruth Marie (Krohmer) Kelley was born to Fay and Rozella (Linafelter) Krohmer on February 9, 1950 in Mitchell. She was raised in Wessington Springs with her four siblings. She moved to Rochester, Minn., for a short time, before settling in Huron.
She was my mom, the best mom! Was she your grandma, great-grandma, your mother-in-law, your sibling, your family member, your friend, your church friend, card, bingo friend, coffee friend, foster mom, or daycare mom?
My mom and I were blessed with the best life-long friends who we see as family, when she met Connie and Danny Stevens and Donna and Dave Bennett. Their children became my siblings since I was an only child. She also thought of their children as her own. My mom was an amazing mom. She was there to support us in tough times. She was there celebrating in the most cherished moments. Before I came along she worked at Dairy Queen and as a nanny.
On Easter in 1972, she said she was blessed with her greatest gift when I was born. My mom then started with daycare and foster care so she could always be there for me. She cared for more than 200 kids as part of her daycare family and touched the lives of over 100 foster children. It was then she married Marvin Kelley.
They adopted her last two foster children, Nicole and Sonya. When I was young, we spent many Saturdays roller-skating. She also spent many years playing in several card clubs. She loved working at the fair, playing bingo, being part of camping clubs, helping with the Lions club, the Salvation Army Christmas program, and working in the church kitchen. She also enjoyed teaching others to play card games, including her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.’’
Grateful for her heart of gold and all the love she shared are her daughters, Linda (Bret) Spencer of Fordyce, Neb., and Nicole (Tim Fritz) Weber of Huron; three grandchildren: Ashley (James) Hufford, Jesica (Mathew) Wharton, and Genesis Fritz; seven great-grandchildren: Sage, Milo, Aurora, and Nola Hufford, Jayce, Addyson, and Skyler Wharton; her siblings, Maryann Hager of Iowa, Keo (Mark) Hamilton of Colorado, Fred (Jan) Krohmer of Wessington Springs and Frank (Chris) Krohmer of Mitchell, along with many nieces and nephews.
Her “children” will be her pallbearers, Austin McKinney, Rusty Brevik, Scott Stevens, Tony Stevens, Dwayne Bennett, and Darwin Bennett. Her lunch will be catered by her “son” Doug Stevens.
She is preceded in death by her parents; her husband, Marvin Kelley in 2018; her daughter, Sonya; and two grandchildren.
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