ActiveRain March Challenge: St. Patrick's Day
Patricia Feager and Lew Corcoran are the hosts for the "March 2025 ActiveRain Challenge: Sharing the Gift of Who You Are." The ActiveRain challenge is to share the profound impact someone had on you in shaping you to who you are today.
During this third week of the ActiveRain March Challenge, St. Patrick's Day makes me recall special memories. On this date in 1965, I made one of the most important decisions of my life and asked Dolores to marry me. She accepted and our wedding was on June 12, 1965 in Portsmouth, Virginia, my home town. Today is the 60th anniversary of our engagement. During every day of all of those years, I have benefited from her love and support.
I had opened my first real estate and insurance office during the summer of 1961 after graduation from the University of Virginia School of Law. By 1965, business was good and I lived in a professionally decorated garden apartment in a new community that my company managed. I had never done any cooking and the kitchen was like new when Dolores moved in to turn the apartment into our home. She is a skilled chef and I continue to enjoy every meal she prepares
Dolores obtained her real estate and insurance licenses and working in our insurance agency while assisting me with my real estate business. Dolores joined me with my community activities in the Lions Club, the Chamber of Commerce, the regional builders association and other organizations. As I served on the board of directors and went through the officer chairs at the builders association and eventually served as president, Dolores took a leadership role in the related women's group.
Dolores attended conventions and meetings with me when I was active in the state home builders association and helped me select a convention location in Puerto Rico when I served as the chairman of the convention committee.
I served on the board of directors of the National Association of Home Builders for a number of years and eventually served on the Executive Committee. Dolores always went with me to the conventions and the meetings that were held across the country.
Dolores was an art history major in college and her encouragement helped me expand my interest in the arts. With the assistance of the staff at an art museum, we hosted a number of local art shows in our offices and traveled internationally with other museum members.
When one of our lawyer friends became president of the state bar, he appointed Dolores to serve on a district disciplinary committee and she had to opportunity to work with many of the outstanding lawyers in the area. Her work complimented my interest in the law and the related ethics.
Dolores was an active golfer may years and played in a number of tournaments. She even got me on the golf course on occasion but I could not match her skills.
When we moved from Virginia to Maryland many years ago, Dolores continued to serve as a licensed real estate agent to assist me. Her interest in the arts lead her to serve as a docent at the Corcoran Gallery of Art in DC. Dolores has also shared my interest in photography and we have taken thousands of photographs during our travels.
I could write much more about Dolores and her importance in my life, but the blog would be too long. I have mentioned enough for you to see that I have been a very lucky guy to have her as my wife.
I hope you also have some good St. Patrick's Day memories. Have a great day and enjoy your local activities.
Green Dahlia, Color Edited for our Imagination Series,
Wheaton, Maryland USA IMG_7403 A
Canon PowerShot G11 Camera
Photograph by Roy Kelley
Roy and Dolores Kelley Photographs
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