Elizabeth J. Keller, shop owner

Posted 8/21/13

Elizabeth J. “Betty” Keller, 95, formerly of Lafayette Hill, the proprietor of a jewelry shop in Chestnut Hill for more than 40 years, died July 27 at the Fallbrook Skilled Nursing Facility in …

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Elizabeth J. Keller, shop owner

Posted

Elizabeth J. “Betty” Keller, 95, formerly of Lafayette Hill, the proprietor of a jewelry shop in Chestnut Hill for more than 40 years, died July 27 at the Fallbrook Skilled Nursing Facility in Fallbrook, Calif.

Mrs. Keller operated the Elizabeth Keller Shop at 8123 and 8012 Germantown Ave., where she specialized in bead design and restringing, and jewelry and watch repair, from 1958 until declining health forced her to close.

Born Elizabeth Jane McElhinney in Philadelphia, she was sent to Ballymena, Ireland, to live with an aunt after her father died when she was 3 years old. Returning to the United States when she was 10, she attended J.S. Jenks Elementary School and graduated from the Philadelphia High School for Girls.

As a young woman, she worked for a time at the Frank & Seder department store in Philadelphia, where she became a buyer for hats, gloves, neckwear and jewelry.

Mrs. Keller was a lifetime member of the Presbyterian Church of Chestnut Hill and taught Sunday school there for 20 years.

A skilled cook, she was often asked to prepare special dishes for family gatherings.

She is survived by a son, David Keller, of Richmond, Va.; a daughter, Jane Hendron, of Oceanside, Calif., and a niece, Elizabeth McElhinney, of San Jose, Calif. She was preceded in death by her husband of 54 years, William, and a brother, Richard McElhinney.

A private service and interment will be held Thursday, Sept. 12, at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery, Point Loma, Calif. Memorial donations may be made to the Alzheimer's Association, 225 N. Michigan Ave., 17th floor., Chicago, IL 60601, or to an animal charity of the donor's choice. – WF

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