John J. Kelly
1941-2018
John was born in Illion, New York. He worked throughout school in various clubs and joined the military out of high school. He was stationed in Libya during the Cold War, serving in the military from 1959 until 1967. While on active duty, he was investigated for being gay. Yet, because his friends and roommates stuck up for him, he was not dishonorably discharged.
He returned to the US and was stationed in Wyoming. He lived in Colorado after leaving the military and worked in the hotel and tourism business. John also worked in hospitals and for the Air Force Academy. During the 1970s John helped develop several large hotels and resorts in Vail, Colorado.
John was engaged several times, yet still struggled with his sexual orientation. He finally came out as gay in the 1980s. John helped found the American Veterans for Equal Rights (AVER) in the 1990s. They began by serving Sunday dinners at Urban Peak for homeless LGBTQ youth. John volunteered with The Center from 2010 until his death in 2018.
“Nowadays the younger generation doesn’t have to do like I did and live two lives, you don’t have to be something you’re not, you don’t have to live a lie,” John said. “Look how many gay men refused to accept the fact that they were gay, how many hurt their own lives… I guess my advice would be to live your life and get involved, give back, become part of the community, and I think the more we know our own people, I think the better our lives are.”