Class News

John Nathan ’64 writes about honoring a Yale Law School classmate

February 8, 2020

John Nathan wrote:

After graduation, I went on to Yale Law School, became a Saybrook Freshman Counselor, and lived in the Vanderbilt Suite in Vanderbilt Hall. My roommate was an extraordinary individual named Ken Kelley (Yale Law School 1966; Davidson College 1963).

After getting his law degree, Ken became an Army officer and volunteered for service in Vietnam. Once there, he volunteered for night helicopter missions. Tragically, he was killed during the Tet Offensive in February 1968.

After Ken died, the Kelley family arranged for a plaque in Ken's honor to hang in the Yale Law School library. Decades later, I discovered the plaque was lost during a renovation of the library. I contacted the Dean, who immediately set into motion arrangements for a new plaque and a dedication ceremony at the Law School on February 2, 2019, exactly 51 years after Ken's death. Family, friends, and classmates traveled from around the country to attend. One classmate flew in from Alaska for the occasion.

After the dedication, we organized a scholarship in Ken's memory and raised over $200,000. Most fitting, the first recipient of the Ken Kelley Scholarship was a former Marine Corps major who became a first-year YLS student following his military service.

More details about the new plaque, its dedication, and the Ken Kelley scholarship were published in a YLS article.