Florence “Dolly” Kelso, 82, of Brookville, PA, died peacefully on Sept. 10th after an extended battle with Multiple Myeloma.
Dolly was born on May 7th, 1931. She was married for 25 years to Allen R. Hetrick who died in 1979 at the young age of 54. In 1981 she married William G. Kelso who died in 2011 at the age of 92.
She was the daughter of Joseph and Mary (Kettin) Bockoras. She was born and raised on “B” street in Brookville and moved 50 yards down the same street and made her own home for the rest of her life.
She is survived by 6 children, Ann M. Mooney (Daniel) of Brookville, Carol T. Wagner (Richard) of Stoystown, PA, Jean A. Reynolds of Brookville, John A. Hetrick (Donna) of Fredericksburg, VA, Mary M. Bowen (Ronald) of Brookville, Daniel W. Hetrick (Donna) of Fredericksburg, VA. She has 14 grandchildren and 7 great grandchildren. Her children, grandchildren and now great grandchildren were the love of her life. There is nothing she wouldn’t do for any of them. Watching them all grow and succeed made her feel like the luckiest person on earth.
She was preceded in death by an infant son, William, 2 brothers Albert Bockoras & Edward Bockoras, 1 sister Margaret Potash and son in law Chris Reynolds.
Dolly worked at various places in Brookville, Sylvania, Hilton’s Diner, Murphy’s 5 & 10, and as a clerk for Sterck’s. In 1954 she took a position as a secretary for the Brookville Borough Tax Collector. In 1977 she was elected Tax Collector for Brookville and held the office until 1985 when she retired.
Dolly loved going out of her way to help others. She made personalized greeting cards with pictures she had taken, mailed notes with photos to hundreds of friends and family, knit slippers by the dozens, made premi hats by the hundreds to donate to hospitals, sat at bedsides of failing elderly who had no one, never wanting credit for any of it. She was an active member of the Immaculate Conception church, a volunteer for years at the Library, was in many bowling leagues over the years, loved to play cards, knit, sew, etc.
The family would like to express our gratitude and appreciation to the many special friends who were there for us over the last 4 years. We are also grateful for the quality of care and compassion that she received while a resident at the McKinley Health Center.
Friends will be received from 2 – 4 and 7 – 9 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 13, 2013 at the McKinney Funeral Home, 345 Main Street, Brookville, PA 15825.
Funeral Mass Saturday, Sept. 14, 2013 at 10 a.m. Immaculate Conception Church, the Reverend William L. Laska presiding.
Burial to follow, St. Marys Cemetery.
Memorial donations made be made to Immaculate Conception Church, Rebecca Arthurs Library or Hahne Cancer Center of Dubois PA.