Kevin Lee Flannery of Juno Beach, Florida, died February 6, 2010 at Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center, Florida. He was 57 years old and succumbed to a massive heart attack.

Kevin was born on September 16, 1952 to Verda Kringen Flannery and the late Rod Flannery of Wessington Springs, South Dakota.

After graduating from the United States Naval Academy in 1974, he served in the U.S. Navy for 8 years piloting P-3 aircraft. After military service, he went to work as an engineer with General Electric Space Systems.

He then achieved his lifelong dream of flying as a commercial airline pilot when he joined U. S. Airways in 1985 where he spent 25 years fulfilling his dream.

A Celebration Of Life was held in Dover, Delaware on February 13th with many family members and friends attending.

A special segment of the Celebration focused on Naval Academy classmates who shared warm, humorous and touching memories with those attending the ceremony. In advance of the service, over 30 Annapolis classmates communicated, via the Internet, with kind thoughts about Kevin and the great contributions he made while at the Academy and in the 35 years thereafter.

Grateful for sharing his life are his three children Bryan of Dover, Delaware, Sean of Juno Beach, Florida, Erin, a student at East Carolina University, their mother Diane of Dover, Delaware, Kevin’s mother Verda, of Wessington Springs, South Dakota, her fiancé, Bob Phillips of San Diego, California, two sisters, Kris McMullin and husband Steve, of Fort Worth, Texas and Karen Weiss and husband Tom of Parkston, South Dakota and brother, Kelly Flannery and wife Victoria of Rapid City, South Dakota.

At a later date, Kevin will be laid to rest in Wessington Springs, South Dakota near his father, Rod and sister, the late Kim Busby.

The name “Kevin” is an Irish name meaning gentle and lovable, and because one of the ways Kevin exemplified his name was in his love for dogs, his children request that memorial donations be sent to the Kent County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), 32 Shelter Drive, Dover, Delaware, 19934 or online at www.aspca.org.