Five days a week, he delivered the mail in Howell and Farmingdale. On Sundays, he delivered sermons as the beloved pastor of Ardena Baptist Church in Howell, NJ.
The Rev. Harvey P. Kelley, who served as pastor for more than 40 years, died Saturday, April 21, 2018 at his home in Howell, surrounded by his family. He was 80 years old.
Rev. Kelley was voted pastor of Ardena Baptist Church by the membership in 1965 and served until he retired in 2006, ministering with a special place in his heart for the youth groups and Vacation Bible School. A true man of the people, Rev. Kelley also retired as a letter carrier for the United States Post Office in Farmingdale and Howell.
He was born in New Castle, Pennsylvania, and raised in Isle, Pennsylvania, and lived in Slippery Rock, PA before leaving to study at The King’s College in Briarcliff Manor, New York. While at school, he worked nights at a hospital in Tarrytown, New York, and that is where he met his wife, Doris. He graduated from The King’s College with a bachelor’s degree and received his divinity degree from Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary, Philadelphia. His first appointment as a pastor was at Dividing Creek Baptist Church in Dividing Creek, New Jersey, south of Millville not far from the Delaware Bay.
Rev. Kelley enjoyed spending time outdoors and relished in the time he spent being “Papa” to his grandchildren.
