Colleen Kelley Schaefer, Neosho Rapids
Neosho Rapids native Colleen Schaefer of Birmingham, Ala., and formerly of Deal, N.J., died Sunday, Aug. 12, 2007. She was 83.
Mrs. Schaefer worked for the Carton Law Firm in Deal for 55 years, where she began as office secretary in 1945 and later was promoted to office manager. In April 1942, she moved from Kansas to work for the U.S. Army Service Corps in Washington, D.C. during World War II.
The daughter of Leo and Lelia Kelley, she was born Feb. 16, 1924, at Neosho Rapids. She graduated from Hartford High School.
Mrs. Schaefer was a member of the Deal Country Club and the Women’s Club, working with the boys club, mental hospitals and other organizations. She also was involved with the Cancer Society Organization and the Heart Association and was a mentor for children at the Eatontown Grammar School.
She moved to Birmingham, Ala., in 2004 to be near family. She is survived by four brothers, Jerry Kelley, John Kelley, Everette Kelley and Kenneth Kelley; and three sisters, Carolyn Schroeder, Joyce Wardell and Rita Louk. Her husband, Robert J. Schaefer, and two brothers, Darrell and Glen Lawrence, died earlier.
The memorial service will be at noon Friday at the Deal Country Club. The graveside service will be held at a later date in Hartford Cemetery in Hartford.
The family suggests that instead of flowers memorial contributions be made to Amedisys Hospice Care, the American Lung Association or a charity of the donor’s choice.