Obituary: Kelly, Daniel
He was born July 30, 1945, in Tacoma, WA, to John and Ernestine Kelly.
He graduated from Spanaway High School in Spanaway, Wash., in 1963.
He married Robyn Miller on November 16, 1990, in Tacoma, WA, and was married to Linda Underwood from 1962 to 1982.
Dan worked as an electronics technician and helped to design, build and run underwater remote operated vehicles for offshore salvage operations.
He loved working on the 100-foot steel boats in the open ocean.
In 1977 he, his wife Linda and their three children moved onto a sailboat.
Dan had long dreamed of visiting Alaska, and in the summer of 1981 he and his family sailed to Ketchikan, Alaska.
After several months in Ketchikan, Dan and Linda separated.
Dan continued to sail between Mexico and Alaska with his youngest child, Zeke.
He and Zeke worked on missionary projects in Mexico for several years.
Dan was a devoted Christian and spent many hours in prayer and Bible study, especially in his later life.
He was passionate about sharing the message of Jesus with anyone who would listen.
Dan was slowed by a 1989 diagnosis of kidney failure and diabetes.
He decided to buy a 42-acre farm in Dalkena, WA, with his wife Robyn, in 1990.
He loved the solitude and beauty of the farmland almost as much as he had loved the ocean.
He often said he was “blown away” by the awesomeness of God’s creation.
Dan never accepted anyone else’s version of what life should look like; he forged ahead, carving his own path - relentlessly independent, relentlessly questioning.
Dan remodeled buildings, repaired engines, sewed sails, and welded and fabricated boat parts while under sail.
There never seemed to be anything he couldn’t fix, create or master - with great energy, charisma and fierce determination.
Dan was preceded in death by his father, John Kelly, and his sister, Sandra Kelly, both of Tacoma, WA.
He is survived by his wife, Robyn Kelly of Dalkena; mother, Ernestine Kelly of Tacoma; daughter, Danelle (David) Landis of Ketchikan; daughter, Jo Snyder of Spokane; son, Ezekiel Kelly; step- daughters, Krystyne Miller and Johanna Miller of Spokane; stepson Ben (Tami) Miller of Spokane; ex-wife, Linda (George) Mortensen of Spirit Lake, Idaho; and grandchildren, Cyrus Kelly of Dalkena; Ariana (Chance) Brecht, Bo Snyder, Vonnie Snyder and Luke Snyder, all of Spokane; and Jackson Landis, Claire Landis and Izaak Landis, all of Ketchikan.