Tribal member Lieutenant Colonel Patricia Camel-Kelly to leave for Iraq

Lieutenant Colonel Patricia Camel-Kelly is believed to be the highest-ranking tribal member officer who is in active-duty. (Courtesy photo)

Lieutenant Colonel Patricia Camel-Kelly, Pend d'Orielle tribal member, and 18-year veteran of the United States Army has recently been given orders to return to Iraq with a hospital unit. She is currently in training at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas, and is scheduled to leave for Iraq by the end of March for a 12-month tour. This will be Kelly's second tour since the war began in 2003. Currently, Kelly is a certified nurse practitioner.

"To give an idea of how far she has come, the next step my mother can take is colonel, and then general," said her elder son Rich Janssen. "My mom has worked very hard to get where she is today, her entire family is extremely proud."

"She also seems to be a peace with what she has to do and is very busy getting ready for deployment to Iraq at the end of February" said Janssen. "Her entire family will be praying for her safe return."

Kelly's tours have included stops in Fort Bliss (El Paso, Texas), Germany, Fort Hood (Killeen, Texas), and Fort Polk, (Leesville, Louisiana) where she was a part of the 115 Field Hospital, in which she spent six months in Kuwait during Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2002.

Lieutenant Pictured left to right: Rich Janssen, Jr.;Lieutenant Colonel, Patricia Camel-Kelly; Dr. Kimberly Alice Nenemay; and Jesse Janssen. Lieutenant Colonel Kelly's three grown children are extremely proud of their mother's accomplishments and military career as the gather here during Christmas time last year in Ronan. (Courtesy photo)

Patricia was born in St Ignatius, attended school in Ronan, and graduated from Montana State University with a degree in nursing in 1972. She recently received her master's degree in community health nursing from Tulane University.

Before entering the Army in 1987, Patricia was employed by the Indian Health Service in St. Ignatius as a community health nurse, and spent the majority of her life living in Ronan.

Patricia is the daughter of Pend d'Orielle tribal elder, Alice (Nenemay) Camel and the late Henry Camel. Patricia has two sons: Rich Janssen, Jr. of Ronan and Jesse Janssen of Pablo; and one daughter, Dr. Kimberly Alice Nenemay of Piscataway, New Jersey. Patricia is married to retired master sergeant (US Army) Isaac Kelly of Killeen, Texas and has numerous brothers, sisters, and grandchildren currently residing on the Reservation. Kelly plans on returning to the reservation upon retirement from the Army in a few years.