TOP CHARACTER STRENGTHS

SPIRITUALITY - KINDNESS - HUMOR

Kelly Sutton was born on January 11, 1975, in Brooklyn, NY. He joined the Navy in September of 1994 and became a First Class Machinist Mate. He was an exceptional leader in the Navy and loved mentoring the young sailors. He served on the USS Boxer from1995 to 1999, then the USS Belleau Wood from 2002 to 2005.

Kelly met his wife, Angela, Sutton in 1997 and the two were married on January 8, 2000. They have four beautiful children, two daughters and two sons. He was strong in his Christian faith and loved God, which he demonstrated by always helping others and giving back to his community. He was also sarcastic, funny, witty, caring, intelligent, compassionate and an amazing father and husband.
Being from New York, Kelly absolutely loved all NY teams but the Giants were his favorite team. He also played football in high school and was one of the top players who received a scholarship but unfortunately did not maintain his grades. That’s when he decided to join the Navy. Once he shifted his mindset and saw the Navy as a career, he was laser-focused. He was so focused on the opportunities available, he started taking classes and looking into how to become an officer. He loved mentoring the junior sailors as he felt that's what was lacking early on in his career. He wanted to provide guidance, direction and hope.

Aside from mentoring, he absolutely loved helping others whether it was inviting his crew mates to church, discussing the Navy as a long term career or passing out food to other military members. He had a heart of gold when it came to serving others. He felt if we were blessed with "extra" why not help those in need.

Character Strength Story:

SPIRITUALITY - His strong belief in Christ is what drove his kindness and wanting to help others. He wanted to be a strong leader for our family and in the Navy. It was so important to him to share God's word and love that he invited shipmates to church and Bible Study.

KINDNESS - He was a gentle giant who loved paying it forward. He would volunteer to distribute food to other active duty military members. If a shipmate's wife was in the hospital after giving birth, he would make sure to visit. He would feed the homeless and provide money or clothes when needed.

HUMOR - Kelly had a sarcastic nature about him. I attribute it to being a New Yorker. He loved making me and the kids laugh, especially with his New York accent. We would tease him because he couldn't enunciate some words. We thought it was hilarious. He loved making the kids laugh whether it was letting the girls put makeup on him and act like a cheerleader or playing football with our other daughter. He was the life of the party.

—Submitted by Angela, Surviving Wife