Kelly, Alene Fay

The Heavens above just received another angel, one with the prettiest blue eyes. Alene Fay Kelly, 67, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, passed away Saturday, June 30, 2012, in the Dennis and Donna Oldorf Hospice House of Mercy after fighting a very long, courageous battle with cancer.

Alene was born on April 4, 1945, to Raymond and Clara Dorman. She grew up in Belle Plaine, moved to Tama, Iowa. in the 1960s then returned to Belle Plaine, where she met James Kelly in 1968 and married on March 26, 1972 in Wellman, Iowa.

Alene would become a “Domestic Goddess” as many would tease her. She was a loving wife, mother and grandmother. Anyone who would cross paths would soon become a friend. She was a devoted and dedicated mother who raised four children, Jolene (David) Dawes, Rory (Laurie) Kelly, Jammie (Doug) Lauterwasser and Jared (Angela) Kelly; six grandchildren, Jenna Busch, Kelsey Dawes, Rory Kelly Jr., Myles Kelly, and Shayla and Koley Kelly; and two great grandchildren, Caleb and Katelyn Busch.

Alene had a wonderful life filled with many memories of taking lots of vacations or as some would say, extended shopping trips. She loved a good “dish” on the cellphone, loved learning to “text” on the phone and entering the world of Facebook! She loved hard and fought hard and never once thought of giving up. The past 12 years she fought the ugly battle with cancer. Alene will be greatly missed but will be in a better place and will have the peace and comfort that she deserves.

Alene is survived by her husband, James Lynn Kelly; her children; grandchildren; and her siblings, Shirley Wilfong, Joan Hudson and RuthAnn Kaufman.

She was preceded in death by her infant son, Randy Zeman; parents, Raymond and Clara Dorman; two brothers, Henry and Raymond Dorman; and a sister, Madeline Wisner.

The family would like to say thanks to all who walked the path with Alene during these trying times, Mercy Medical Center, Dr. Cearlock, Dr. Wiesenfeld, Dr. Wilbur and the girls at Oncology Associates, The Treatment Center, the staff at Dennis and Donna Oldorf Hospice House of Mercy, Amy Wilson and Jan DeBenedetti, two nurses who went above and beyond and became such good friends to the family and two special nieces, Penny Dunning and Sonja Kaufman who helped so much.

There will be a Celebration of Life service held in Belle Plaine at a later date.

In Memory of Alene, please have your colonoscopies at a sooner age. When colon cancer is detected soon enough it is preventable.

Published in The Gazette July 2, 2012.