He landed at Omaha Beach on June 9, 1944,[2] and spent the remainder of World War II in the European theater.

Kelley earned a bachelor's degree in Science and Physics in the summer of 1939 from West Kentucky University.

Following World War II, then a Lieutenant Colonel, Kelley attended California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, CA, graduating with a Master's of Science in Civil Engineering in 1948.

He was subsequently assigned to the 4th Engineer Combat Battalion, of the Fourth Division, which was stationed at Fort Benning, and then later at Camp Gordon.

In November 1944, the 358th was stationed in Antwerp and, assisted by British forces, dredged the canals necessary for supplying Army operations inland.

[2] Kelley returned to the US to attend Caltech, and then was assigned to the Command and General Staff College in Fort Leavenworth.

His efforts to help solve "numerous fish problems related to the Columbia River" were noted by a biologist, Fred Cleaver.

Kelley was appointed by the governor of Louisiana to the Board Of Commissioners Of The Port Of New Orleans from Jefferson Parish, and eventually became chairman.

The General Roy S. Kelley continues to patrol the waters of New Orleans, and has ferried important personages including Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La.

[15] During his time in West Point, Kelley met Catherine Regina Lahey, a teacher at a nearby school in Pelham, NY.