Brigitte Marie Kelley

Brigitte Marie Kelley (known affectionately as "Brig"), a long time Hemet Valley resident and active member of the community, died December 10th, 2017. She was 91 years old. Brig was the loving wife of Senator David G. Kelley.

Brigitte was born in Potsdam, Germany, a suburb of Berlin, to Dr. Herman-Walter Frey and Marie Frey-Richter on Nov. 20th, 1926. Her life had many adventures. As a child she lived part-time in Rome with her family while her father worked at the Vatican Library. Because of the air raids on Berlin during World War II she was evacuated to Seeham, Austria outside of Salzburg where she went to high school. After the war, when she returned to Germany, she would befriend the American Army troops and trade her mother's artwork (silhouettes) for food, using the opportunity to interact with the soldiers and practice her English. She also worked as a translator in General Patton's headquarters in Bad Nauheim, further perfecting her English.

After the war ended she and her family settled in Freiburg, Germany on the edge of the Black Forest bordering France and Switzerland. While there, she enrolled at the University of Freiburg. In 1948 she received a scholarship from the Quakers to attend Mills College in Oakland, California as a foreign exchange student. As part of her scholarship program she did service on several Native American Indian Reservations. During her summer breaks she worked on the Navajo Indian Reservations in New Mexico and Arizona. It was in Taos that she met Frieda Lawrence and her contemporaries. She also worked in Old Orabi on the Hopi Indian Reservation where she developed a love for Hopi art and began collecting jewelry, pottery, kachina dolls and rugs. On her return trip to Germany via the U.S.N.S. General George W. Goethals, a troopship sending recruits overseas, she was asked to teach German to a group of Air Force officers. It was during this trip that she met David Kelley, her husband to be (and agreed to date him because he had a car)! In 1951 - 52 she worked as the head translator for the Reaction Analysis Division in Frankfurt, Germany (similar to a Gallup poll) to document the German reaction to the American Occupation. Brig and Dave married in 1953 in Frankfurt, Germany and returned to Hemet in 1955 to settle on the family citrus ranch in Bautista Canyon.

As a Hemet Valley resident, Brig was active with Valley Beautiful and various artistic and cultural endeavors. She ushered at the Ramona Pageant, formed book groups and participated in activities at the Hemet (County) Fair. After her children were grown, she returned to graduate school at the University of California, Riverside - where she earned a Masters Degree in Spanish Literature and befriended UCR Chancellor Tomás Rivera and his wife, Concha.

Brig taught German in Adult Continuing Education and Spanish at Mt San Jacinto Junior College. She loved collecting art and antiques - in particular Spanish and religious art - and enjoyed traveling all over the world.

Brig is survived by her husband, Senator David G. Kelley, her children Sharon Haupt, Bridget Kelley, Margaret Valine (Rod) and Kenneth Kelley (Susan); in addition to 9 grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren.

Online condolences can be sent to www.miller-jones.com

In lieu of flowers, please donate to the Mills College Tribute fund (email: [email protected] or https://www.mills.edu/giving-to-mills/) in memory of Brigitte Kelley.