Larry Scott Kelfer (nee Sumner Arnold Kelfer) passed away on July, 27, 2016 from complications of cancer and pneumonia. Born in Everett, MA to Abraham and Norma Kelfer on November 18, 1929 and was graduate of Roxbury Memorial High School and Boston University with an AA degree in General Education. Blessed with a rich baritone voice, his passion was to be an entertainer. During college he was hired as production singer and Master of Ceremonies at the Old Howard Theater in Boston, the oldest burlesque house in the U.S. He worked with such headliners as Sally Rand, Peaches Browning and Tempest Storm until he was drafted into the Army. While serving in the Army for two years he was assigned to Special Services and travelled through Germany in Army shows. After his honorable discharge he won a two year scholarship to the American Theatre Wing in New York City, after which he appeared in many regional theater productions throughout the country. Between "gigs" he supplemented his income as a part time clerk at the American Journal of Nursing publishers in New York City. It was during a production of "South Pacific" that he met the love of his life, Ron Powers. It was soon decided that to preserve the relationship it would be wiser to pursue business careers. The American Journal of Nursing hired him as a permanent employee where he eventually became subscription manager of their three nursing publications. He remained with them for over seven years until Ron had an offer to join a new company starting up in Los Angeles, CA. Larry's background was such that the new company hired him to set up and establish administrative procedures in the areas of contracts, filing systems, purchasing, etc. at their corporate headquarters. The fledgling company, CCH Computax, originated the first income tax preparation computer system for CPA's in 1965. It began with three service bureau processing centers and grew to 26 locations in the United States, as well as one in London and Hawaii. During the peak of the tax season they employed up to 15,000 temporary employees at the service centers. Larry retired as Assistant Vice President of Administration after nearly 25 years of service. The company eventually became a software company as the technology evolved to allow the programs to be run in-house at the CPA offices. The company still exists. Larry retired to Palm Desert, CA in 1990 where he became involved in a local theater as a performer with the West Coast Opera Theatre (WCOT) who produced operatic and musical theater at the McCallum and Annenberg theatres. He also appeared in numerous College of the Desert Fine Arts productions for which he received a Desert Theatre League Award for outstanding supporting actor in a musical "La Cage Aux Folles". He has served on the Board of Directors of WCOT; as well as his Homeowner's Association; has been a volunteer at the Eisenhower Medical Center (EMC) for over 25 years; served on the Auxiliary board of EMC for over 12 years, as well as President of the Board for 2 years. As President of the EMC Auxiliary Board he also participated at some of the Board meetings of the Betty Ford Center, chaired many fund raising events for EMC and procured named entertainers for the events, as well as serving in the committee for the design of the Lucy Curci Cancer Center Healing Garden. One of his most satisfying experiences as a volunteer was when he started a hand bell choir at EMC's Memory Care Center with the clients of the adult care facility for Dementia and Alzheimer. He conducted the choir on a weekly basis for over nine years. Larry leaves behind his beloved spouse of 59 years of "sharing and caring", Ron Powers (who he was officially able to marry in 2008); his sister Elaine Kelfer (Margaretha) of Long Island, NY; sister-in-law Nathana Berman (Harvey) in Florida and nieces and nephews in Boston , Florida and Seattle, WA. He was pre-deceased by his parents and his brother, Robert Kelfer of Boston, MA. In lieu of flowers, it is requested that a donation be made in his memory to the EMC Memory Care Center, 42201 Beacon Hill #A, Palm Desert, CA 92211 or to a charity of your choice. Entombment will be at Forest Lawn 69855 E. Ramon Rd. Cathedral City, CA. on August, 1 2016 at 12 noon. A celebration of life will be schedule at a later time.
