Daniel W. Kelly

Daniel Wayne Kelly passed away on Saturday, January 4, 2025, at United Hospital in St. Paul, Minnesota. Dan was born on September 22, 1960, to William (Bill) and Carmen (Sater) Kelly in Des Moines, Iowa. He always thought he was special as he was born on his mother’s birthday.

His early years growing up were in Des Moines. Dan attended Christ the King school through 7th grade and was involved with Cub Scouts. In 1974 the family moved to St. Charles, Iowa and he then attended Interstate 35 Junior and Senior High schools. Throughout his school years Dan was involved in Speech, Drama and was the yearbook editor his senior year, 1979. Dan was known for his typing skills and held a record of 102 wpm on the typewriter (pre-computer days). Those long fingers also helped him to milk a cow faster than anyone else too! Dan had a great positive attitude with an infectious smile and was friendly to all.

After graduating high school Dan attended Northwest Missouri State University and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business. While at NWMSU Dan was involved in the business and accounting fraternity, Phi Beta Lambda, and was a member of his beloved Delta Chi social fraternity. Dan absolutely loved the Greek life although being teased of living in Animal House. Over the summers Dan made several school trips to California, Penn State, and Texas. Dan graduated in 1983 and moved to Kansas City, KS and taught business at Dickinson Business School. Dan moved back to Des Moines in late 1984 and began working at Amoco and ARC (Link Associates).

Dan loved traveling, riding his motorcycle, being with his friends and his nieces and nephews. Just shy of his 26th birthday, his life severely changed on Wednesday, September 10, 1986. He was hit head-on while driving home from work. Dan spent 97 days in a coma at Methodist Hospital. This is when he started his stretch of defying the odds as he wasn’t supposed to survive the accident. After several months of rehabilitation Dan was able to come home with Mom. He was brain injured and physically disabled on his left side, but he regained ability to walk assisted with a cane. He could even navigate on the para-transit bus to attend physical therapy. He spent time at home and in care facilities in Minnesota and Iowa. In 1994 he moved to Minnesota permanently to live with his brother, Joe and wife Colleen. They took wonderful care of Dan until it was unfeasible as Dan needed care that couldn’t be provided at home. In 2017 Dan began to live in other group homes or nursing facilities. Although he was no longer physically living with Joe and Colleen, Joe made sure Dan was taken care of and advocated for him very well.

Since 2022 Dan had been in and out of hospitals with various illnesses. Again, several times he defied odds and would miraculously get better. He was again teased that he had more lives than a cat. In January 2023 Dan had surgery to remove his colon due to cancer. After this his body would deteriorate until finally, he could not overcome what was happening. After this last battle of infection and respiratory issues Dan passed away with Joe by his side. He is no longer in pain and is free from constraints.

Dan is survived by his siblings, William (Bill) Kelly of Huntsville, AL, Barb (George) Hafkey of Grinnell, Joe (Colleen) Kelly of St. Paul, MN, Jane (Dave) Harmon of Pleasant Hill, IA, David (Dorene) Kelly of Des Moines, IA and Sue (Kirk) Strain of Urbandale, IA and numerous nieces and nephews and great nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be directed to Dan's family for a fitting tribute to be decided later.

Visitation will be at Hamilton’s Southtown Funeral Home, 5400 SW 9th in Des Moines on Sunday, January 19, 2025, from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm.

A memorial service will be at Assumption Shrine Catholic Church, 2841 South St, in Norwalk, Iowa (aka Churchville) on Monday, January 20, 2025, at 11:00 am.

Burial will follow at Calvary Cemetery, 9012 20th Ave, in Norwalk, Iowa (Churchville) with a luncheon to follow at Assumption Shrine Hall.

Condolences may be expressed at www.HamiltonsFuneralHome.com.

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