Kelli Ann (Wyatt) Colella

Kelli Ann (Wyatt) Colella, a longtime educator and assistant principal at Christ the Teacher Catholic School in Newark, Delaware, died unexpectedly on November 8, 2026, at the age of 54. Her death was announced by the Diocese of Wilmington and by Doherty Funeral Home, which is handling her arrangements, and it left her school community and wider circle of family and friends in what reports described as disbelief and deep sorrow.

Colella was born in Wilmington to Raymond Wyatt Sr. and Lorraine "Nancy" Wyatt, both of whom predeceased her. She devoted her entire professional life to Catholic education in the Diocese of Wilmington, joining the diocese in 1999 and spending 32 years there in total. For 15 of those years she worked at Christ the Teacher Catholic School in Newark, first for a decade as the school's counselor and then for five years as assistant principal, a role in which she helped lead the school, alongside fellow assistant principal Ashley Torelli, during a period when the school operated without a permanent principal.

Colleagues and reports describe her as someone who spent her life looking out for others, guided by her Catholic faith, and known for a sense of humor that put people at ease. She held a master's degree in Elementary and Middle School Counseling from Wilmington University and a master's degree in Educational Leadership from Neumann University, credentials that underpinned both her counseling work and her later administrative leadership. She was also involved in support programs for students, including helping launch an educational support initiative for struggling students at Christ the Teacher.

Outside of school, Colella was known among those close to her as a devoted Phillies fan who enjoyed reading mystery novels and watching the television series NCIS. She was the wife of Amada Stephen Colella. She is survived by her husband; her brother, Raymond Wyatt, and sister-in-law, Cindy Wyatt; her nephews Cody and Tyler Wyatt and their partners; close friends Maureen "Mo" Querey and Tina Mahler; and her family dog, Dexter, along with cats and a wide circle of friends, colleagues, and current and former students.

No cause of death has been made public. Reports from the Diocese of Wilmington's newspaper The Dialog and from her funeral home obituary both describe her passing as unexpected, but neither has specified a medical cause, and none has been confirmed as of this writing. A visitation is scheduled for Tuesday, November 17, from 9 a.m. to noon at St. Margaret of Scotland Church in Newark, Delaware, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at noon the same day. Interment will be private. In lieu of flowers, her family has asked that donations be made to a scholarship fund established in her name at Christ the Teacher Catholic School.