Michael "Mike" Kelone, age 66 of Hessmer, passed away on Tuesday, August 17, 2021 at Christus St. Frances Cabrini Hospital surrounded by his wife and daughters.

A Mass of Christian Burial for Michael Kelone was held at 11:30 a.m. on Thursday, August 19, 2021 at St. Alphonsus Catholic Church in Hessmer officiated by Fr. Edwin Rodriguez. Burial followed in the church cemetery.

Visitation was held that morning from 8:30 a.m. until 11:00 a.m. at Hixson-Ducote Funeral Home of Bunkie.

Mike was born in New Orleans in 1954 to Joseph and Delta Kelone. He was the oldest of 6 children, became the patriarch of his family in 1994 when his father passed away, and always remained close to his siblings. He was married to Lisa, his wife of 37 years, who was the love of his life. He was the father to 5 children who adored him dearly. He was an amazing husband and father and took care of all of those he loved.

Mike was an avid hunter and outdoorsman. He had high respect for nature and loved being outside on the lake and pond. He was an excellent problem solver, a natural leader, and a man of endless skill sets. He was the go-to guy when you needed anything fixed or something custom built or if you needed life advice when things got tough. He was incredibly generous when it came to helping others and had saved numerous lives throughout his lifetime. He believed in working hard and enjoying the life you create. He excelled at taking pleasure in even the small moments that life offered - such as catching the sunrise over the water and sitting on the front porch swing drinking coffee with his "darling" wife.  Mike was happy-go-lucky and often expressed how fortunate he was to "want for nothing" and be "completely content" with his "perfect life" he'd built with his "darling". He worked for Cabrini Hospital for 47 years and just recently retired fully at the end of June. He was excited to start retirement life with Lisa at his side.

He is preceded in death by his father, Joseph C. Kelone.

He will be forever cherished by those he left behind including: his wife, Lisa Fontenot Kelone of Hessmer; his children, Stephanie Foster of Metairie, Megan Lemoine (Lawrence) of Bunkie, Chad Van Mol of Hessmer, Elise Pearce (Adam) of New Orleans and Kallie Oalmann (Daniel) of Hammond; his mother, Delta Kelone Morgan (John) of Hessmer; his siblings, Dave Kelone (Linda) of Marksville, Kenneth Kelone (Tracey) of Dry Prong, Tony Kelone (Missy) of Hessmer, Rita Moreau (Lynn) of Hessmer and Brian Kelone (Evie) of Hessmer; his grandchildren, Brooklyn Foster, Graham Oalmann and Noah Oalmann; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Pallbearers included:  Brandon Guillory, Brandon Kelone, Paul Kelone, Jason Moreau, Matthew Moreau, Brent Myrick, Daniel Oalmann and Adam Pearce.