Vivian Kelley

Vivian Kelley was a woman of great strength, and even greater faith. She was a sweet, supportive woman, who lived a long and full life, a life full of family and fond memories. Vivian was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother and friend, a lady with a golden heart, who always showed us the silver lining in life. Vivians story began on a cold winter day in 1909, as the holidays approached in the little town of Whalen, Kentucky. Those were times of great change in this country, as William Taft succeeded Teddy Roosevelt as President of our 46 states, and the Model T automobile and the airplane continued to transform the globe. On December 17, 1909, Earl and Myrtle (Brown) Sublett had a big change of their own, with the birth of a baby girl, a daughter they named Vivian Belle. Vivian was the couples only child, and was raised on her parents farm. Her dad was a hardworking farmer raising cattle, tobacco and corn. Being the only child on the farm, there was never a shortage of chores for Vivian to attend to. She spent countless hours of her youth out in the fields, helping plant the tobacco and the corn, and she was known for her ability to drive the team of horses and break in the mules. Vivian attended a little one-room schoolhouse, called Snowball, in Whitesville, Kentucky. She was a very bright young student, and enjoyed school and learning new things. When she was just a young teenager, she went off to the Bowling Green Teachers College in Bowling Green, Kentucky, and graduated when she was just 17. Vivian soon found work as a teacher, and was an outstanding educator. She was an excellent storyteller, and an avid reader. She also commanded respect from the kids in her class. The folks that hired Vivian figured that if she could break mules, she could handle her students! Vivian was a beloved member of her community, too, and everyone loved her great sense of humor and good natured personality. One Sunday Vivian was sitting in church when she noticed a handsome young man named Ernest Carrol Kelley, who worked as a mechanic at his brothers garage. Carrol had noticed her, too, and the first time he laid eyes on the ravishing Vivian, he told his brother he was going to marry her! Little did he know how right he was. The two soon began dating, fell in love, and were married on April 26, 1936, by Carrols father, who was a traveling minister in the area. The newlyweds settled in Whitesville for a few years, before heading out West to find their fortune. The couple moved to Indio, California, where Carrol went to work for a lumberyard, and Vivian worked in a local dress shop for a time. Soon shed have a bigger job to fill: mother. The couple became parents in 1942, with the birth of their daughter Carol. The growing family soon moved to Pasadena, where Carrol went to work for the Pentax Camera Company. Pasadena became a wonderful home for them, where they lived for many years, and where they raised their family. In 1948, the couple had their second child, their daughter Vivi Anne, who was born with Downs syndrome. Vivian was a wonderful wife and mother, who devoted her days to caring for her family. She was a gifted seamstress, who made many of her girls clothes when they were kids, and she could stretch a dollar further than anybody. Vivian also became an active member of her community, from the Pasadena Covenant Church, to the Christian Womens Club, to the service group called Matronalia, which did volunteer and fundraising work in the community. Vivian was always a woman of great faith, and she also served as a Prayer Mother for the nearby Fuller Seminary students, often having them to her home for dinner. Vivian was priviledged to be a food provider for Frances Siewert, who was translating the Amplified Bible, one of the very first paraphrased Bibles. In the introduction of the Amplified New Testament, Mrs. Siewert thanks her "Ravens" - that was Vivian. When her daughter married Dave Anderson, and her daughter Anne moved into a group home, Vivian and Carrol bought a conversion van, and traveled all over the country, from California to Florida, to Kentucky, often camping right on the beach or in a mountain rest area. Vivian and Carrol were also very good friends with Dave's parents, Arthur and Mabel, and enjoyed each others company for many years. Carrol was diagnosed with cancer in the 1970's and Vivian lovingly cared for her husband until his death in 1978. Vivian got through those times with her family and her faith, ever the women of strength. After Carrol's death and Dave's father Arthur's death, Vivian and Mabel remained good friends and continued to travel throughout the states and Canada. After Carol and Dave moved to Muskegon, MI, Vivian began visiting Carol as often as she could and especially at every holiday, a place she enjoyed very much. She returned every June to help Carol and Dave work on the Miss Michigan Pageant, which she loved doing. Vivian was known as Grandma to the contestants and was a chaparone for nine straight years. Vivian finally moved to Muskegon in the late 1980s, first living on her own, and later moving in with her daughter and son-in-law. She loved being close to her grandchildren and great grandchildren, especially, and was there for nearly all of their births over the years. Vivian continued to lead an active lifestyle in Muskegon, where she joined the Forest Park Covenant Church. She enjoyed going down to the Muskegon Lake channel, watching the boats come in while they had a picnic dinner. The family also continued traveling, taking the van up to Traverse City for dinner, or driving all the way to Tennessee to see Dave while he was away on business. Vivian always served as navigator, sitting in the Matriarchal Seat, in the front passenger spot. Eventually, as her years progressed, Vivian began to have some health issues. Her legs began having problems, so she got a little scooter to travel around in, never slowing her down. Then, in January of 2008, Vivian caught a virus, and her health went down hill from there. Vivian graduated to Heaven on Saturday, March 22, 2008, at the age of 98. Vivian was a wonderful woman, who lived a long and full life, a life full of family, faith and fond memories. She was a devoted wife, loving mother, grandmother, great grandmother and a friend to so many. Most of all, Vivian was a woman with a golden heart, and a great wit who taught us to see lifes silver lining, just as she always did. She will be greatly missed. Vivian is survived by her daughters, Carol (David) Anderson of Muskegon & Vivi Anne Kelley of Los Angeles, CA; 3 grandchildren; Arlene (Edward) Carter of Whitmore lake, MI, Laura Anderson of Muskegon & Rebecca (Adam) Gillette of New Jersey; 7 great grandchildren, Marykate Carter, Molly Carter, Michaela Carter, Jack Carter, Jordyn Stanberry, Jensyn Stanberry & Sophia Gillette. She was preceded in death by her husband Ernest in1978. Services are scheduled for Thursday, March 27, 2008, 11:00 AM at Forest Park Covenant Church with Pastor Russ Carlson & Pastor Paul Bengston officiating. Interment at Mountain View Cemetery Altadena, CA. Memorial donations may be made to the Forest Park Covenant Church. Please visit www.lifestorynet.com to share a memory or sign the online guest book.