Chair and Treasurer – After thirty-two years in education, Kelly Faris retired from Put-in-Bay Local School District where he served as teacher/administrator from 1972 to 1996. Before accepting the position at Put-in-Bay School, Faris taught in Lorain, Elyria, Maumee, and Port Huron, Michigan.   He graduated from Kent State University with a major in Education and English and did graduate work at Bowling Green State University.

Faris worked twenty-five years as the elected, fiscal officer of the Village of Put-in-Bay until his retirement in 2008.  For thirteen summers, he was a seasonal ranger for the National Park Service, ending that tenure as a law enforcement officer.

Since its formation, he has served as the secretary/treasurer of the Lake Erie Islands Conservancy.   

He is also a trustee for the DeRivera Park Trust which owns and operates the downtown park land on South Bass Island (Put-in-Bay, Ohio).  

As a free-lance photo-journalist, Faris has had numerous articles and photographs published. 

At the present, Kelly Faris is the chair of the Village of Put-in-Bay Tree Commission.   He was instrumental in the creation of Put-in-Bay Township Park District, a local government entity whose mission is to preserve and protect unique natural areas in the Lake Erie Islands.  He serves as the secretary and chair of that organization.

He and his wife Marty have four children and nine grandchildren.  They are residents of Put-in-Bay, Ohio, and maintain what they call a “winter cottage” in Perrysburg, Ohio, the geographical center location of their grandchildren.