Dr.John Russell Kelsey, originally of Deep River, and Killingworth, Connecticut, died on September 30, 2025, in Tucson, AZ, where he was lovingly cared for by his nephew, Ian Wulff. He is predeceased by his parents, Molly Hardaker Hermiston Kelsey, and Phillip C. Kelsey, and his two sisters, Phyllis and Patty Kelsey. He was 93 years old. He is survived by his nieces and nephews, Mark Wulff, Letitia Wulff, Ian Wulff, and Liesl Wulff. John lived a full life; one of his greatest prides was the long heritage of the Kelsey clan in Connecticut, starting with William Kelsey who immigrated to Connecticut in 1632. John traveled extensively around the world, and later in life he worked as a Music Ethnicologist. He went to Papua New Guinea and Australia as a Fulbright scholar, an honor he received twice. He worked in Papua New Guinea with the natives to learn their music and instruments. He also got his small plane pilot's license so he could travel off the island . In Australia he was a professor at Goroka Teacher's College, in the Eastern Highlands Province. John was a musician through and through. He had played clarinet for the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, and played piano as well; he was skilled at tuning and repairing pianos too. John graduated from Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut with a doctorate in Music Ethnicology in 1993, and was employed there in the music department from 1991 to 2005. He is sorely missed, and will be remembered with love and reverence. His ashes will be buried in Fountain Hill Cemetary, Centerbrook, Connecticut.