Congratulations Dad

We recently flew to California to see my dad be inducted into the Hall of Fame for his time at Yuba Jr. College. It was such a great trip! My dad did such an amazing job speaking, he had seriously been worried about it for months and had said he wish he would have just said no just so he would not have to speak. When he got up he was of course nervous but he was able to keep it together and say what he wanted EXCEPT thank his mom and two sisters and wife...who were all there!! He is upset about that but all in all he did fantastic!
I am mostly thrilled that my girls were both so good! The night before we left I almost had Mike cancel his and Colee's tickets and just stay home with them so I could go out and really visit with my Grandma but at the same time I really wanted her to see the girls. Emee had been so very ornery the week leading up to leaving and Colee was an emotional mess because my mom had left a few days early to drive out with my dad. She is my mom's 24/7 side kick! I made the decision at about midnight that we would just have to suck it up and endure the girls because it was more important that they meet my beautiful grandma...well...they were AMAZING!! I could not be happier with them. Emee was darling and not ornery at all and Colee was very cute and played really well with London.
I only wish we could have been there longer! I have really been blessed to be so close to both of my grandma's and to still have both of them here with us is so amazing! I have always had a very close relationship with my Grandma Freda. We were so fortunate to have her be able to come and stay with us when we were younger for extended periods...I really miss that! She was there for those terrible awkward years as a teenager and I still remember some pretty horrible days at school but knowing I was coming home to Grandma was just the medicine I needed. She would never judge..only love and she is such an amazing listener. I love you Gran.
Congratulations Dad! We love you! Below is the article that was in the local paper about him with some pics of the trip. The only thing that could have made it more perfect was if Bubby could have made it out!

Colt felt left out of the rolling contest so he got down right in the middle. He really did have
his feelings hurt...it was so sad!

Since Emee absolutely has no interest in rolling whatsoever...Case is the obvious winner.

Ooh I can not even begin so say how much I LOVE my Grandma!!

Papa with baby Case

Aunt Lea did Colee's hair for the plane...cute girl!

This is the picture and stats of Dad at the Hall of Fame dinner while he was speaking

Dad with Coach Gadberry (his high school coach)

Emee (five mos.) with Grandma Freda

Angie brought some Jelly Bellies for everyone and there was a game
called Bean Boozled and it was HILARIOUS! Logan and Mike were
tasting them all trying to find the gross ones and it was seriously
awesome!! Logan is such a fun kid...we love him!

Former 49er to be honored
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February 18, 2010 12:56:00 AM
By Todd R. Hansen/For the Appeal-Democrat

Some believe Ron "Butch" Kelley was the best athlete ever produced at Sutter High School.

He wasn't too shabby at Yuba College, either.

The football star, who once held the shot put record at Yuba and went on to play two seasons at the University of Utah, will be among the seven honorees at the 12th annual Yuba College Athletics Hall of Fame on Saturday.

"I think it is an honor," said Kelley, who was a four-sport star for the Huskies before dazzling the 49ers faithful from the fall of 1967 to the spring of 1969.

"I didn't even know they had an athletic foundation hall of fame going, and I had lost touch with a lot of the players out there," Kelley said. "I am hoping some of those people will be there. I am looking forward to seeing them."

Kelley, who does hunt with some of his old Sutter pals and former coach Wayne Gadberry, said when he was growing up, baseball was his true love.

"I was a baseball nut. ... We would play all day and all night," he said.

And while he was an all-league player in football, basketball, baseball and track and field at Sutter, it was on the gridiron and in the shot put circle where he did his best work.

As a senior, Kelley finished fifth in shot put at the state championships. What he remembers most about that competition, though, was the guy who finished third.

Anthony Davis, who went on to star as a running back at USC, probably weighed less than 175 pounds, but still out-threw the much bigger Kelley by more than a foot.

"He was just so quick in the circle," Kelley said.

The introduction to other great athletes — and in particular black athletes — continued during his time at Yuba College, an experience that helped shape his future.

Kelley remembers simply being wowed by a freshman running back by the name of Fred Riley, who would lead the 1969 Yuba football team to the mythical national championship as a sophomore. Riley is a member of the Hall of Fame as well.

"It was a great starting place for me. I enjoyed it for both football and track and field," said Kelley, who was selected all-conference as a fullback and linebacker his sophomore year.

That success catapulted Kelley to Utah, where he was a two-way starter for the Utes in 1969 and 1970.

Once in Utah, Kelley fell in love with the country.

"I've been here ever since, and I ended up marrying my roommate's sister," said Kelley, who resides in Lehi, which is located 12 miles north of Provo and 23 miles south of Salt Lake City.

A lieutenant in the state Department of Corrections, Kelley actually graduated with the intent of becoming a teacher, though not for long. Instead he went into iron work. But in order to spend more time with his family, he answered an ad looking for correctional officers.

To his chagrin, Kelley's son, Isaac, rejected Utah's advances and chose to play for rival BYU, where he was a starting linebacker for three years.

"I had a little problem with that at first," laughs Kelley.

Early on, he even wore his Utah red at the BYU games, something his son did not like much.

Now he will proudly display his Yuba College colors, again.

"I am looking forward to it," Kelley said.