Kitty Ardapple Kelly

Katherine (Kitty) Kelly Doherty of Lafayette, IN passed away on October 2, 2023 at the age of 100 years. Katherine Jane Ardapple was born on August 2, 1923, in Lafayette IN. She graduated from Jefferson High School and attended Depauw University. Kitty had a fashion flair and loved to dance. She married Robert Franklin Kelly on November 10, 1941, at the First Christian Church in Lafayette, IN. She is survived by three children, Colleen Kelly of Lafayette; Diane Kelly Johnson of Maui; and Tom Kelly of Westlake Village, CA. She is survived by 10 grandchildren Jeffrey (Nina) Gery of Fort Wayne; Douglas Gery of West Lafayette; Matthew (Deborah) Johnson of Albia, Iowa; Melissa Johnson of Maui; Barry (Dawn) Kelly of Las Vegas, NV; Denise (Tim) Rozenboom of Moorpark, CA; Spencer (Elizabeth) Kelly of Maple Grove, MN; Tyson Kelly of Liverpool, England; Thomas Kelly of Westlake Village, CA; Cameron Kelly of Westlake Village, CA; and 15 great-grandchildren (Dominic, Josie, Anthony, Bianca, Lillian, Lyla, Hunter, Kyle, Ryan, Mia, Rachel, Kate, Sarah, Callum, Ferris) and four great-great grandchildren. The generations span 10 decades. The Kelly family has had many musical successes throughout the years that culminated with the naming of West Lafayette’s Bob Kelly Performing Arts Center in 2022 at West Lafayette Junior-Senior High School.

Robert died on April 5, 1991, aged 73, and is buried at Tippecanoe Memory Gardens in West Lafayette. He was born April 13, 1917 in Williamsport, IN.

Kitty married Jim Doherty in 1996 in New Smyrna Beach, Florida. Jim died May 25, 2011, aged 83.

Kitty will be buried next to Robert Kelly at Tippecanoe Memory Gardens in West Lafayette after a private family service.