Kelly Jean Heser passed away Monday Sept. 12, 2022, at her home in Milford at the age of 58. Kelly was born Oct. 15, 1963, in Billings, Montana, to Roger and Shirley (Mohrman) Kness.
Kelly, as a young girl, would spend time and work with the crops and livestock at her grandparents’ farm near Monroe. Kelly was an athlete at Milford high school (1982) playing softball and shot discuss and further competed in track and field at Kearney State College. Kelly received her college degree in Education and Art in 1987 and started teaching at Malcolm and then back to her alma mater of Milford. Kelly had her son in 1992 and decided to take a break from teaching to take care of family life and also pursue an associate degree in Computer Graphic Design and Art at Milford SCC in 1999. She took a job with Swanson & Russell the same year to develop and create her art for advertisements until she realized missing her true passion of being a teacher.
In 2001, she returned to Malcolm to teach but also took the time to get her Masters of Physical Education at Doane College. Kelly then started teaching at Centennial in 2005, until finally retiring in 2022. The classes she taught over the years were many and any subjects spanning over kindergarten through the 12th grade, mostly being P.E. and art. She did coaching for high school softball, also junior high volleyball and track. Dedicating her energy, time,and skills for the students that she taught was the greatest reward that could be given to her.
Kelly was a great artist, making all things creatively. Her favorites are detailed pencil drawings, making colorful warm quilts and making anything beautiful for her friends and family. She enjoyed spending time with her “YaYa” friends in the summer and also playing five-point pitch at Hill’s bar weekly. Anyone that she spent time with would say she loved to shoot the breeze and also have a hearty distinctive laugh that everyone would know. Kelly loved nature and plants, with the hard work and dedication she had her house and back yard look like you were in a completely different gorgeous world.
She loved yellow butterflies, especially, as they reminded her of her father being with her. Kelly also enjoyed traveling, from long treks to the majestic sights of Alaska to short drives to rural areas to see the hidden treasures they held. Kelly found Rob as her missing half and has spent most of her free time going on adventures with him and living it up with the Williams family that she held dear to her heart.
Kelly is survived by her son, Ethan Heser, Beaver Crossing; mother, Shirley Kness, Milford; brother and sister-in-law, Ross and Sharon Kness, St. Charles, Missouri; sister and brother-in-law, Johanna and Scott Evers, Lake Mills, Wisconsin; aunt, Sharon, and uncle, Leonard Henry, Ontario, California; uncle, Larry, and aunt, Elaine Kness, Ozark, Missouri; uncle, Larry, and aunt, Lois Mohrman, Columbus; also her significant other and love, Robin Williams, and his daughter, Caitlyn, Hebron.
Kelly is preceded in death by her father, Roger Kness, grandparents and aunts and uncles.
Visitation to sign the registration book only will be Thursday, Oct. 20, and Friday, Oct. 21, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Lauber Funeral Services, Milford. Visitation with family greeting relatives and friends will be Friday, Oct. 21, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Milford Mennonite Church. A memorial service will be Saturday, Oct. 22, at 2 p.m. at the Centennial Public School auditorium in Utica. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions are suggested to the Centennial School Foundation. Condolences may be left for the family online at www.lauberfh.com.
