 In January 2011, Kelley retired from public service.His combined forty-plus years of naval and state service were recognized in a retirement party attended by 500 persons that also raised $300,000 for the Massachusetts Soldiers' Legacy Fund, which pays the educational expenses for children of those soldiers who died in the Global War on Terror.As president of the Medal of Honor Society, Kelley advocates for the living recipients and their spouses and promotes their Character Development Program in middle, high, and now elementary schools.