Betty Jane Kelly passed away peacefully in her sleep on November 20 in Roanoke, Virginia. She was raised in Clymer, Pennsylvania, lived in Southern California for a decade, then lived in the Washington, DC area.

Betty Jane was born in Commodore, PA to Floyd L. Houck and Leona K. Houck in 1925. She attended a two year business school in Philadelphia and had a long career in business management. Numbers and finance were her strong suit and she was attentive to every financial detail. She and her husband, Peter, ran their own business, Kelly Scientific Corporation in Washington, DC and she started American Communication and Electronics, Corp., which pioneered cable TV. They had many government contracts and were required to have annual audits. Betty would have every document, every number available for the auditors to maximize their efficiency. Even at the age of 92, she enjoyed discussing financial matters. Politics were a favorite topic and she would read and critique the government budgets. She was a shrewd investor.

A particular talent of Betty was the ability to guess which slot machines would “pay off” in Las Vegas. Using only touch to determine which ones were full, she was surprisingly accurate. Her skill enabled her to pay all her trip expenses including round trip air fare for two from Washington, DC. As soon as she recovered enough to reimburse herself, she would walk away. She claimed she never gambled. None of her children inherited her talent to their dismay.

While not a vegetarian, Betty often avoided meats and heavy foods. As a result, she was always slim and did not suffer from lifestyle diseases. Well groomed and a neat dresser, she always made the clothes she wore look good.

Betty is preceded in death by her husband, Peter M. Kelly. She is survived by her three children: Peter F. Kelly of Roanoke, VA, Alice Kelly Rose of Orange Co., CA, and David R. Kelly of Lexington, KY, five grandchildren: Paul Riesenman, Kelly Rose Durbin, Saundra Rose, Thomas Rose, Nolan Kelly, and three great-grandchildren: Jordan Riesenman, Connor Riesenman and Primose Durbin.

Services will be held Saturday, November 25th at 1:00 at the Rairigh Bence Funeral Home at 965 Philadelphia Street in Indiana PA. Burial to follow in Greenwood Cemetery, Indiana, PA.