On February 16, 2023, Kelley Shoemaker, beloved wife, mother, grandmother, aunt, sister, and friend, passed away at the age of 62.
Kelley was born Feb. 18, 1960, in Columbia, Mo., to Robert and Elva Canning Schafer. She grew up in Salem, Mo., and earned a Bachelor’s in Pharmacy in 1983 from the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
She married Mike Shoemaker May 18, 1985, in Salem. The couple lived in Lee’s Summit, Mo., with their sons, John and Joe, until moving to Long Valley, NJ, in 1996. In 2021, they moved to Lawrence, Kan., to be closer to family.
Kelley worked as a hospital and retail pharmacist in Kansas City and Long Valley before retiring in 2018. She belonged to Valley View Chapel in Long Valley, where she played bass guitar in the praise band and volunteered in the senior high girls ministry, the church nursery, and the library. She also had been active in her sons’ school, and sports activities. Kelley enjoyed traveling, attending Broadway plays, walking, reading, and sewing.
She will be lovingly remembered by her husband, Mike, of Lawrence; sons, John, (Casey Boyles) of Alexandria, Va., and Joe, of Philadelphia, Pa.; a granddaughter, June Kelley Shoemaker; her mother, Elva, of Lee’s Summit, Mo.; brothers, Rob (Minnie), of Cuba, Mo., and John (Suzie), of Loch Lloyd, Mo.; two nieces; seven nephews; four great-nieces; four great-nephews; and several aunts, uncles, and cousins.
A celebration of life memorial service will be held 11 am, March 18 at Valley View Chapel in Long Valley, N.J. The family asks that you pray that medical science will discover a safe and effective treatment for Posterior Cortical Atrophy.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Alzheimer’s Association, P.O. Box 1260 Lawrence, Kansas 66044 or donate directly at https://act.alz.org/site/Donation2 f_id=51079&51079.donation=form1&mfc_pref=T&utm_source=google&utm_medium=paidsearch&utm_campaign=giving_google&s_subsrc=giving_google&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIpJ3GoY-l_QIVOButBh0UgAf-EAAYAiAAEgJKlfD_BwE
