Final Salute

John A. Kelch, Jr., 92 years old of West Chester, PA passed away on Thursday January 9, 2025, at Aventura at Pembrooke West Chester, PA.

He was the husband of the late Jeanne McCarthy Kelch.

Born July 17, 1932, in Weymouth, MA he was the son of the late John A. Koelsch and the late Irene Sexton Koelsch.

John grew up in Duxbury, Massachusetts, graduating at the top of his class from Duxbury High School in 1950. He went on to graduate from Tufts University with a degree in civil engineering. During his years at university, John spent the summers working on Duxbury Beach, scooping ice cream & serving drinks from the ice tubs. This led to his “vice-grip” handshake that his grandkids discovered was still present 70 years later, as well as to his ability to not use oven mitts when removing food from the oven.

After completing his studies, John enlisted in the US Navy and attended Navy boot camp. John was quickly selected for OCS. Not long after receiving his commission, he was granted his request and assigned to the Seabees. This negated his pending assignment to the Submarine Corp, which did not disappoint John in the slightest. Once his original Navy obligation was completed, John decided to return to civilian life and took a role as a Civil Engineer for a global construction firm. In this time, he worked as an engineer on projects such as The Navy Pier in Chicago and the Cross Bronx Expressway in New York. Although he enjoyed the work, he found he missed Navy life and decided to rejoin the Navy and make a career out of it. This led to assignments and travels all around the world in places such as Hawaii, Alaska, California, Rhode Island, The Philippines, and Thailand. He served in Vietnam from June 1963 to May 1964, for which he earned the Republic of Vietnam Meritorious Unit Citation. In 1965 John was promoted to Lieutenant Commander and then to Commander in 1971. In addition to his duties in the Seabees, John spent time serving as a military judge. While stationed in Davisville, Rhode Island (1969 -1970), John met Jeanne, whom he quickly fell in love with. Soon after proposing to Jeanne, John had to travel to California with the Navy. On his first day in California, John woke at 4 am and penned a letter to Jeanne. He wrote “I’ve only been gone a few hours, and I miss you. I think Friday was the happiest day of my life. I’ve often wondered how people know when they’ve met the right person. When I met you, all of a sudden I knew. I don’t think I really knew what pure joy was until being with you. I’m hopelessly, happily in Love.”   John and Jeanne married in 1969 and enjoyed 49 years of marriage. His growing family would move with him throughout the remainder of his Navy career. From 1970 – 1974 John was stationed in Morocco, from 1974 – 1978 in Norfolk, Virginia, and from 1978 to 1981 at Marine Corps Air Station, Cherry Point, North Carolina. After many years of service to the US Navy, John retired from military service as a Commander in 1981.

Originally John and Jeanne intended to return to the Boston area post military, but John received an offer to become the Head of the Physical Plant at Bryn Mawr College, outside of Philadelphia. John accepted the offer and moved the family to West Chester, Pennsylvania, where he purchased the family home that would become the center of the Kelch universe for the next 35 years. This move was a key moment for the Kelch family, as it thankfully saved the Kelch kids and grandkids from becoming Boston sports fans. During his time at Bryn Mawr College, John oversaw the construction of iconic campus buildings such as the Bern Schwartz Fitness and Athletic Center and The Park Science Center. John retired from Bryn Mawr College at the end of 1997.

Post retirement, John enjoyed spending time reading, cooking, and volunteering on the local historical committee. He always enjoyed being visited by his growing number of grandchildren. As Jeanne’s health declined over the years, John focused his energy on seeing to her needs for as long as he was able.

Throughout both his Navy and Bryn Mawr careers, John would always find time to volunteer with the church, serving as a Lector, Eucharistic Minister, and CCD teacher. Teaching CCD did not provide a break from Dad duties. On one memorable evening while teaching CCD at Saints Peter & Paul, he found it necessary to escort his misbehaving son from his class. Reaching the hallway, he was met by another CCD teacher who happened to be escorting another one of John’s sons from another CCD class at the same moment. John’s kids still wonder to this day how he was always able to keep a calm demeanor and positive attitude.

Throughout his life, John enjoyed gardening, reading, keeping up with old friends & colleagues, and cooking. John enjoyed working his way through a Julia Child cookbook. Dinners at the Kelch household could include dishes such as couscous, vichyssoise, wok vegetables, rack of lamb, or cherry jubilee. John was also a talented writer. His annual Kelch Christmas Letter was eagerly awaited by dozens of families around the world. After moving to Bellingham Senior Living, John was finally able to end his decades old battle against the water on Estate drive that was the common theme to so many of the Christmas letters.

John was well known among friends, family, and colleagues as a gifted raconteur. From family functions to dinner parties, to official functions, John could always entertain with his spirited tales. His stories depicted his experiences from travels around the world, growing up in Massachusetts, raising a family, working, and many moments throughout history. These stories helped younger generations get to know family and friends that had long since passed.

Most of all, John enjoyed watching his family grow up and was always there to lend advice and a friendly ear. John was a kind, loving, caring, and intelligent father, husband, grandfather, uncle, friend, and neighbor who consistently demonstrated his core values and beliefs to his family by how he lived his life every day. These core values include:

• Where someone comes from, what color their skin is, how much money they have, or what religion they choose to follow does not make the person. What matters is what they do and how they treat other people.

• Lead and teach by example.

• Integrity is always the best policy. Do everything the right way for the right reason.

• Treat everyone with the same respect, whether they are an admiral, president, seamen, or a laborer.

• Always keep learning.

• Always love your children, no matter how hard they make it.

• Invest your time in true friendships.

• Help others who need help, even if no one is watching.

• Do not waste energy complaining about things you cannot change.

• There are very few things in life at which you cannot laugh. Sometimes people feel that it may not be the appropriate time to laugh. This often makes it much funnier and makes it nearly impossible not to laugh.

He is survived by his 7 children: John (Nairobi, Kenya), Megan (State College, PA), Henry (Phoenix, AZ), Jim (New Holland, PA), Matt (Exton, PA), Tom (Rehoboth Beach, DE), Mary (Philadelphia, PA), his 14 grandchildren, and 3 great grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his sister Agnes, his father John, his mother Irene, his wife Jeanne and Chester, the family dog.

Relatives and friends are invited to his Visitation on Friday January 17, 2025, from 10:00 AM – 10:45 AM at SS. Peter & Paul Church, 1325 Boot Rd., West Chester, PA 19380 followed by his Funeral Mass at 11:00 AM.

Interment will be held in SS. Peter & Paul Cemetery Springfield PA.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Birthright of West Chester, 112. S. High St. West Chester, PA 19380 and/or Project HOME Development Office, 1515 Fairmount Ave Philadelphia, PA 19130.

Arrangements by DellaVecchia, Reilly, Smith & Boyd Funeral Home, Inc. of West Chester, PA 610-696-1181 www.DellaFH.com