TOPEKA, Kan. – Robert "Bob" Kelly, 94, formerly of Amboy, passed away on April 16, 2025.

Bob will be cremated according to his wishes and a service will be announced at a later date. Private burial in St. Patrick Cemetery in Amboy, Illinois.

Kelly was born on December 16, 1930, in Amboy, the son of James and Irene (McBride) Kelly.

Bob graduated from Amboy High School and enrolled in art school in Chicago. He decided that art was not something he wanted to pursue and took a secretarial class. Having been in the U.S. Army Reserves, he enlisted in August 1954 and served until August 1956. He served in the Army Counterintelligence at the rank of sergeant.

Kelly was hired by Santa Fe Railroad in Chicago, where he met his wife, Mary Ann Findlay and they married in 1963. They moved to Topeka, Kansas in 1976 and Bob continued to work as superintendent of car services until his retirement in December 1988.

After retirement, Bob and Mary Ann served as docents for the Topeka Zoo, where Bob would give tours at the Combat Air Museum in Topeka.

Kelly is survived by his sister, Patricia Kelly; brother-in-law, William Findlay; sister-in-law, Karen Findlay; nephews and nieces, Jim Kelly of Rockford, Jeff (Connie) Kelly of Rockford, Jerry (Lisa) Umbdenstock of Antioch, Tenn., Colleen (Pete) Patrino of Atlanta, Ga., Dan Umbdenstock of Denver, Colo; and several grandnephews and grandnieces. He is predeceased by his wife, Mary Ann; brother, Richard Kelly; and sister-in-law, Charlene Kelly.