Frank Duane Kelly dies at 86

Frank Duane Kelly, 86, of Wrangell, passed away April 30 in Wrangell after battling a long illness.

He was born in North Dakota on Feb. 23, 1937. He enlisted at a young age and served four years in the U.S. Army. After an honorable discharge from the service, he began his journey and love for Alaska.

He logged and fished throughout Southeast until choosing to settle in Wrangell with his sister Patricia and brother-in-law Bill Overbay. "Everyone knew Duane as just 'Kelly,'" his family wrote. "He worked with Bill on the pile driver and fished many years on the Miss Susan."

"Kelly enjoyed sportfishing, an occasional pull-tab while watching a good baseball game. He was a quiet man with a kind smile who will be greatly missed," his family wrote.

He is survived by his sisters Patricia Overbay, Helen Christianson and Louise Eisenzimmer, and sister-in-law Marilyn Kelly, along with many nieces and nephews.

A military funeral honors ceremony will be held later this summer.