In loving memory
Mike Kelly lived out loud, smiled and laughed through it all.
Husband. Dad of five. PopPop. Golf partner, running buddy, self porclaimed comedian, and avid sports fan. This is the story of how Mike lived.
Mike's story
The man in the family photos
We put this page together the way Mike would have wanted it told not as an obituary, but as a highlight reel. If you ever met him, you already know: he never met a stranger, never lost his grin or laugh, and never once made you feel like you were too busy for a story.
Mike was married to his best friend, Beverly, and the two of them built a loud, lucky, and big family together. Then came the grandkids and with them, Mike's finest role. He carried them on his shoulders at the beach, took them to swim class, attended baseball games, retired and became a babysitter and taught them to swing a club and root for the Irish and Phillies, and never missed a chance to tell anyone within earshot exactly how proud he was.
Mike, in a few words
- Husband to Beverly
- Dad to five
- Proud grandpa
- Philly sports faithful
- Golfer & runner
- Two-year fighter
01
The family man
Family was Mike's whole world, and he never made a secret of it. Kitchen table parties, softball, basketball, baseball, football games, birthday parties in the yard if his kids or grandkids were showing up, Mike was already there, holding a spot and telling whoever would listen about them.
He and Beverly showed all of us what a real partnership looks like: side by side through everything, still laughing, still holding hands, loving their children and grandchildren.
02
Bleeding green through thick and thin
You could not sit with Mike during a Notre Dame, Phillies, Eagles, Sixers, or Flyers game and stay neutral. He felt every pitch, every yard, every shot and he believed, sincerely and until the very end, that this was going to be the year....sometimes.
The games were never really about sports, though. They were about being together: kids on the couch, grandkids wearing oversized jerseys, Mike always saying "Pay attention" or "Watch this" or "Play of the game right here"
03
Fairways and finish lines
Golf was Mike's church. Early tee times, a Kirkland glove, and a whole lot of optimism about his putts. He'd play with anyone his buddies, his son, his sons friends, and he always kept it fun. "You can't make it if you don't get it to the hole" "You're not good enough to get mad!"
And he ran. From 5Ks on a Saturday morning to the longer miles and Marathons. Mike loved being out on the road with a crowd, moving forward, greeting volunteers and strangers alike. It's part of why our scholarship runs and charity golf outings feel less like fundraisers and more like family reunions. "Keep going buddy, Keep going"
04
The hardest two years
In 2024, Mike was diagnosed with stage 4 colon and pancreatic cancer. He fought it for two years through treatments and scans and hard days with the same grin, the same jokes, and the same stubborn kindness he brought to everything else.
Cancer is only one chapter of Mike's story, and we refuse to let it be the longest one. What we remember is the man who showed up, who cheered loudest, who hugged longest, and who left every room and every person a little happier than he found them.
“Leave them a little happier than you found them.”
The way Mike lived every single day
The story keeps going
The Kelly Luck Foundation exists because Mike lived like this generous with his time, quick with a joke, first to show up for someone else's hard day. Everything we do, from the scholarship in his name to the families we stand beside, is built on that same simple idea.
Carry Mike's kindness forwardEvery scholarship and every family we help is one more way Mike's story keeps going.