Raymond Foster Kelly

It is with great sadness we announce the passing of our beloved husband, father, brother, grandfather and uncle, Raymond, following a short but heroic battle with cancer. He believed in strong values, humour, following your heart and had a deep appreciation for music. Through the great span of his life, Raymond had an enormous influence on each person who was fortunate to be a part of it. He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Colleen, daughters Sara (Mike) and Brie (John), and grandson Callum, along with his sisters Sharon (Horst), Dawn, and Carole (Bob). Raymond created a world of love that included all of his nieces and nephews, (whom he adored even if he couldn’t remember their names!), and wonderful friends with whom he had many adventures. Ray was predeceased by parents Raymond and Nora and siblings Cary, Eleanor (Bill), Maureen (Al), Colin (Dena), Dennis (Dianne), and Kaye (Brent). In his final hours, Raymond was surrounded by his family and caring hospital staff, with many of his favourite songs in the background, which provided him with great comfort.

Raymond was born in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan in 1936 to Nora and Raymond Kelly. Although he wasn’t much of a fan of school structure, he was a smart man and always ensured his family was loved and provided for. From an early age, Ray loved to explore and learn through the experiences of life itself. After moving to a very small house on Main Street in Vancouver with his parents and siblings – Eleanor, Maureen, Cary, Sharon, Colin and Denis - he decided it would be a good idea to hit the streets and start walking back to Saskatchewan…he was FOUR! Luckily, he was found a few blocks away and returned home safely. The adventures of Raymond continued from there. There was a barn explosion, crazy bike rides and a handful of cars that always needed some type of attention. Then, there were the boats. In his early 20’s, Ray took on the project of building his treasured trimaran, which he named Stella Maris after his beloved aunt, Sister Stella Maris, so he could experience life on the water. He spent months with various friends working on it before setting sail along the west coast. Unfortunately, he only made it just north of San Francisco. A few years later, Ray tackled the treacherous Darien Gap with his buddy Dave Sellers and, after an unbelievably long journey on foot with little food and water, he was greeted at gunpoint by guards at the Colombia/Panama border. In typical Raymond fashion, he talked his way out of a very tricky situation, continued his journey throughout South America, and eventually found his way home to Vancouver. Not one to settle for long, Raymond and his friend Tom Logue took off for Australia where they engaged in various jobs such as cutting sugar cane, surveying in snake infested waters and dabbling as a radio announcer. In the summer of 1969, Ray leased the commercial fishing vessel “The Dreadnought”; unfortunately, that turned out to be the worst salmon fishing season in years!

After returning from Australia, Raymond would sometimes visit his sister Sharon, and her roommate happened to be Colleen. Over time Raymond and Colleen started dating. Ray and Colleen were married on May 8th of 1971. Though life was far from dull with jobs and a love for home renovations, they felt it was time to start a family. In February of 1974, their first daughter, Sara, came into their lives. Then, in 1978, Brianne made the family complete. With the two girls, Ray and Colleen’s life together blossomed. They had recently moved to their new house on Athlone Street where they lived for several years. During this time, Ray decided to take his knowledge of the kitchen business and with Colleen, opened “Kelly Kitchens” in Kerrisdale and later opened “The Kitchen Company” on Marine Drive in North Vancouver.

They always supported their girls through coaching baseball teams, watching soccer from the sidelines in all kinds of weather, and catching every high school choir and band performance with Ray capturing everything on video. There were countless summer vacations camping in BC’s interior with Dawn, Myles and the kids, as well as a variety of worldly trips with his other siblings and their spouses. They had one memorable cruise with his sisters Sharon and Carole and their spouses Horst and Bob, where Ray picked up a nasty case of Norwalk virus.

In the early 90’s Ray and Colleen purchased their cabin in Point Roberts, Washington. It was here that more memories were created. From crab-fests to BBQs to leisurely strolls along the beach, ‘The Point’ was always the place to be (and still is!) from spring through fall. Ray’s second sailboat, “The Diggery Doo”, was moored there and provided endless opportunities to enjoy time on the water once again.

Throughout his long life, Ray always took time to enjoy what he loved with everyone in the family. There were annual St. Patrick’s Day parties, too many weddings to count, as well as endless other gatherings where he would dance the night away to his favourite songs in style. Christmas was always a favourite time of year as it included close family, more music, delicious food, a few glasses of wine and usually a hilarious game or two that filled the room with laughter. Christmas of 2025, we tried a new game- “name that tune”, but with KAZOOS! It was an instant hit for Ray, and he was shockingly good at it!

In his later years, Raymond sustained his active lifestyle as much as he could. He joined local community centres to go swimming and took daily walks.

Raymond will forever be remembered for his kindness, zest for life, witty sense of humour and unconditional love. He will be missed more than we can say and we are so grateful for the joy he brought to our lives.

A celebration of Raymond’s life will be held on Thursday, May 21st, 2026 at 11:00am at St. John the Apostle Church in Vancouver, BC. A reception will follow in the church basement, which suits Ray’s wishes!

Should you wish, in lieu of flowers, a donation to the Cancer Research Society would be appreciated.