By Gretchen Keiser

There are now two ordained in the Kelly family: son, Father James Kelly Jr., who serves the archdiocese of Atlanta, and now his father, who was ordained a permanent deacon in New York's St. Patrick's Cathedral May 1.

The unusual occurrence of father and son being ordained, which may have happened only twice before, was heightened by the fact that both Father James Kelly and his father were ordained by the same man, Cardinal Terence Cooke of New York.

Even the cardinal seemed "delighted" and called the two men to his side at the Cathedral, said Deacon James Kelly Sr. from his home in Dutchess County north of New York City.

Kelly, who is 70 and a retired employee of Dutchess County Community College, revived in his retirement years an interest which had been a part of his life since youth. "They almost got me into the priesthood in the 1920s, so I was always interested," he said.

"When they opened (the diaconate) up to us old married men, I thought I might get involved."

The study for the diaconate, which began in Orlando, Florida, near a family retirement residence, and then was carried out at Mount St. Alphonsus Seminary in New York, involved both Kelly and his wife, Helen. As she joined him for his study, she also accompanies him in their joint apostolate, visiting those in nursing homes and hospitals.

"There is so much work to be done that she'll take one area and I'll take another," Deacon Kelly said. While some people may enjoy having a visitor talk to him, most of the time, "you sit there and listen. That's very comforting to them, to let them know you are interested."

In addition to Father James Kelly Jr., the archdiocese's director of religious education who will soon become pastor of Queen of Angels parish in Thomson, the Kellys have two other sons, Thomas and Robert, and four grandchildren.