Claralee "Clee" Kelly, age 97, passed away peacefully at her daughter's home in Prairie Village, Kansas on March 23, 2022.

Clee was born on January 10, 1925 to Norma Fields and James Everett Kinkead in Fornfelt, Missouri. She graduated from Maplewood High School where she met her beloved Jack Kelly. While Jack served in the Merchant Marines, Clee attended college at the University of Missouri where she became a member of the Tri Delta Sorority and the Missouri Tigers cheerleading squad. Clee later became a flight attendant for Mid Continent Airlines before reuniting with Jack whom she wed on December 5, 1946. Together, they had two children, Stephen and Marianne, that they raised in Alabama and Georgia before settling in Springfield, MO.

While residing in Springfield, Clee was a wife and stay at home mother and an active member of Trinity Lutheran Church, volunteering in many capacities. She was an excellent cook and talented artist and loved to paint; her paintings and Christmas ornaments will be forever displayed in many homes. In her 60's she worked part-time at American Handicrafts and Famous Barr Department Store. Clee created a home where everyone was welcome, and everyone wanted to be a part of. She was the matriarch of the family; the epitome of unconditional love and the glue that held everyone together. She was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother and great grandmother and was very proud of her family. She will be dearly missed and forever held in our hearts.

Clee was preceded in death by her parents, brother and husband.

She is survived by her son Stephen Kelly (Glenda); her daughter Marianne Kelly (Richard Ward); her granddaughters Michelle Pendzimas (Shane); Stacey Boynton (John); and Sarah Green (Jason); her great grandchildren, Jordan Smith, Brianna Smith, Hannah Pendzimas, Connor Green and Finnigan Green; and many nieces and nephews.

Visitation will be held from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Sunday, April 3, 2022, at Gorman-Scharpf Funeral Home (1947 E. Seminole, Springfield, MO). Burial will follow on Monday, April 4, 2022, at 9:45 a.m. at Hazelwood Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, please make donations and memorial contributions to your favorite charity.