Obituary of Bessie Willene Kelley

Bessie Willene Kelley was born September 2, 1932 in Manning, SC to the late Dan Witherspoon and Minnie (Moore) Witherspoon. She relocated north to Brooklyn, NY and later became a long-term resident of Newark, NJ for 40 years. For the last two years of her life, Bessie was a resident at Park Crescent Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center in East Orange, NJ. Mother Bessie Kelley was a true and faithful servant of the Lord. She touched everyone who came into her life with her grace and light, serving as a mother to everyone in her community.

She is preceded in death by her late husband Reverend Melvin Kelley; her siblings, Elizabeth Witherspoon York, John Witherspoon, and Preston Witherspoon; her sons, Clifton Kelley, and Bruce Kelley Sr; daughters, Rhunette Johnson and Florence Kinder. She leaves to cherish her memories her sister, Dorothy Wilson; sons, Leroy Prince Jr (Ethel), John Kelley (Geraldine), Ceasar Kelley, Joseph Kelley (Myisha); daughters, Frances Allen (Willie), Elizabeth Heywood (Leslie), Inez Berry (James), Aretha Brown (Albert), and Shawna Kelley; son-in law, Joseph Kinder; daughter-in-law, Betty Kelley, and a host of grandchildren, great-grandchildren, great-great grandchildren, and many relatives and loved ones.