BY MICHAEL ALEXANDER

Staff Photographer

ATLANTA--Every morning Jim Kelly leaves his house promptly at 8:30 a.m. Driving his green 1994 Ford Tempo, it takes him 10 minutes to reach the ecclesiastical job he’s held for some 30 years.

He approaches his daily responsibilities with youthful enthusiasm and dedication; somebody forgot to tell Kelly he turned 90 on June 22.

A man of small stature wearing black suspenders, he sets up the chapel every morning at Holy Cross Church for 9:15 Mass. Kelly’s been doing it so long he’s been nicknamed “monsignor” and “Holy Cross’s oldest altar server.” He moves quietly and swiftly from the hall closet to the chapel, carrying items to the altar, to the lectern and to the tables in the front and rear. Kelly has it down to a science. He gets the job done with such precision he even has time to say a five-decade rosary before Mass. For most people it would be a routine task, but Kelly treats it with humble reverence, like it’s a gift in return to his Creator.

Recently the Holy Cross community honored his presence and service with a birthday celebration following the morning Mass. Pastor Father Paul Fogarty, parochial vicars Father Larry Niese and Father Peter Vu, office staff, and friends of Kelly were on hand. Sister Marie Leonard, OSB, who served at Holy Cross from 1974 to 1985 as adult religious education director, traveled from Birmingham, Ala., and surprised him by attending the Mass and reception. She even gave a brief testimony about Kelly, describing all the help he had provided to the sisters.

Father Niese, who celebrated the Mass that day, said, “He has a great attitude. He’s always in a positive, upbeat mood. Even though he’s my senior by a long shot, he doesn’t treat me like a kid, which shows his tremendous respect for the priesthood.” Father Fogarty added, “Jim Kelly is very reliable and dependable. He is always there to set up for Mass and even for funeral Masses if he’s needed.”

Born in Mullingar, Ireland, and raised in Philadelphia, Kelly has been a parishioner since 1968. While his beloved wife of 50 years, Margaret, died in 1989, Kelly’s four children, three girls and one boy, remain in close contact with him. Two live in Georgia and the others in Connecticut and Pennsylvania.

Before retiring, Kelly worked as an electrical engineer for 35 years with General Electric. He’s now a member of the Holy Cross senior group, Young at Heart, which meets once a month, takes an occasional bus trip, rents a classic movie from time to time, and plays bingo, where he serves as bingo caller. Other than that, Kelly says, “I take life as I get it, and thank God that I got it.”