Community Corner

Kelley Statue Commissioned for Downtown Mystic

Olympian, Boston Marathon winner and native son John Kelley will be immortalized in bronze in 2014.

The 1957 Boston Marathon winner, and local hero, John J. Kelley passed away in North Stonington in 2011. But he will live on in bronze in a work to be created by sculptor Brian Hanlon of New Jersey.

According to the John Kelley Memorial Fund website www.johnkelley.org, which is devoted to the memory and legacy of the two-time Olympian, a life-sized statute of Kelley and his dog Brutus will be erected in 2014 in the little park on Baptist Hill in downtown Mystic, near Mystic Pizza.

The announcement on the website includes this note: “We want to give everyone the opportunity to feel included in this project. The statue will overlook Downtown Mystic for generations! There will be an area on the illustrative panels to acknowledge our lead donors ($1,000 and up). Please donate now!”

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The John Kelley Memorial Fund is recognized as a charitable and tax-exempt organization by the IRS. One hundred percent of donations will be applied to a Memorial for John J. Kelley. Specifics regarding placement, design and materials will be decided by the Kelley family and the committee.


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