Barbara Adams Kelley died at Arlington, VA on June 5, 2023. Born in 1929 into a prominent New England family, she was married for almost 70 years to General Paul X. Kelley, USMC (Ret.), twenty-eighth Commandant of the United States Marine Corps. General Kelley predeceased her in 2019.
From 1983-87, Barbara served as the First Lady of the Marine Corps with a signature warmth and grace, welcoming thousands of guests and distinguished visitors to The Commandant’s House at Marine Barracks Washington, DC. Popular on the Washington social scene, she was active in the International Neighbors Club, attended numerous events at the White House and foreign embassies and was a friend to Presidents and First Ladies. She was a member of the prestigious F Street Club and enjoyed many lifelong friendships with people from across the globe. In her early years as a Marine wife, Barbara always made time for volunteer activities such as the Junior League, the Officers Wives Club, and often served as a Red Cross Volunteer in the military hospitals on the bases where she lived.
The daughter of Mr. & Mrs. Russell K. Adams of Fall River, Massachusetts, Barbara attended Harcum Junior College on Philadelphia’s Main Line. She married Lt. Paul X. Kelley in 1951. Barbara is survived by her daughter, Chris Kelley Cimko, and her husband John Cimko, of Duck, NC, and granddaughter Alexandra B. Cimko of Florence, Italy.
Burial will be private. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the General P.X. Kelley Memorial Fund at the Outer Banks Community Foundation, PO BOX 2299, Manteo, NC 27954. https://obcf.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/create/fund?funit_id=1040
