Michael Henry "Mickey" Kelly of Marshfield passed away peacefully on October 22, 2023 after a valiant battle to recover from a stroke. He was 77.

Michael was born and raised in North Weymouth, the oldest of five brothers. He grew up loving sports of all sorts and trips to Fearings Pond in the summer. He was president of St. Jerome's CYO and acted in numerous plays in high school.

After graduating from Weymouth High School, he drove his Chevy Corvair to Stonehill College where he received his Bachelor of Arts in Economics. He earned a full scholarship to Notre Dame's PhD program in Economics but was drafted before completing his studies. He served in Vietnam, earning the Bronze Star.

He continued to serve his country as a civilian, working on grants and contracts at the Office of Naval Research. He worked at ONR for 48 years, where, among other highlights, he assisted the research expedition that would discover the Titanic. In 2009 he was awarded the Navy Superior Civilian Service Award, the highest honorary award the Chief of Naval Operations may bestow on a civilian employee. He retired in 2021.

Outside of work, Michael could frequently be found on the greens, fairways, and occasional roughs of golf courses across the South Shore. He loved to golf with his brothers and friends and was a regular every Sunday morning at the Ridder Farm Golf Course in Whitman.

A meticulous notetaker, Michael took on the role of family archivist, documenting everything from golf gatherings to holiday highlights to vacation vignettes. He wrote poems and songs to celebrate special occasions, carefully composed and typed up with decorative borders.

He loved to learn and to read, whether it was the Sunday paper, the work of Stephen Hawking, or a good Robert B. Parker mystery. His children always looked forward to his return from business trips, usually with new paperbacks for them in tow.

He took the greatest joy in his large, loving family, and his heart could be found wherever they might gather: Saturday lunches at Grammy's, Kelly Christmas celebrations, Martha's Vineyard taco nights, summer days at Storyland, or cuddled on a couch reading to his grandsons.

Michael is predeceased by his parents, Thomas Joseph Kelly and Elaine Torrey (Clapp) Kelly. He will be greatly missed by his wife of 40 years Nancy Zollinger Kelly; his son Michael and wife Caitlin; his daughter Meghan and fiance Kyle Midura; his grandsons Declan and Henry; and his four brothers and their families: Richard and his loving companion Kate, James and his wife Lori, Tom and his wife Mary, and Paul and his wife Donna, along with many nieces and nephews.

A private service will be held at Massachusetts National Cemetery on November 10. A celebration of life will be held at Indian Pond Country Club on November 11 from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m; all are welcome to join and remember.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in Michael's memory to Amego at https://www.amegoinc.org/give-now or Stonehill College at https://www.stonehill.edu/giving

For online guest book, driving directions and other helpful information please visit the website macdonaldfuneralhome.com