When she was 15, she wanted to join Starfleet, so when the time came, she moved to Earth and took several academy prepatory courses. She was accepted to the Academy in 2366 at the age of 18, where she studied Operations as her major and Security as her minor. She also studied ancient languages and archeology during the summer months and discovered she had a natural ability for linguistics. Her time in the Academy was busy, full of both education and recreation which she balanced perfectly. She graduated the Academy in the top 10 per cent of her class in 2370.

A few days after graduation, she was assigned to Deep Space Nine. Starfleet had just arrived there a few months previously, so Kelly was there practically from day 1. She was a new Ensign in a new frontier and she loved it. She made many friends quickly, one of which was with a Bajoran woman named Tanis Batya, who was pregnant with her first child. When Batya gave birth to a baby girl, she named her Liadan and made Kelly Liadan's godmother. Kelly lived happily on DS9, going on the ocassional mission here and there. She was one of the first Starfleet officers to cross into the Gamma Quadrant through the Worm Hole. She thought she'd never leave that station. Until the Dominion War came. The War caused Starfleet to rethink everything, including intelligence and security tactics. Because of DS9's strategic location, Starfleet sent several special security details to the station. That whole time was full of paranoia, tense nerves, and unsettling developments. During that time, however, she was reunited with Ethan Corrigan, a man she had met at the Academy while taking her minor. He was part of the security details and after a few months, they became romantically involved. When the war ended, Ethan joined the FDTF. Kelly wasn't too far behind but she was unable to get assigned to the same ship as Ethan. She took a position on the USS Cyclone in 2376, however, her relationship with Ethan ended despite thier attempts to keep it going.

When the Cyclone went into refit, Kelly was offered the position of Head of Operations aboard the USS Skywalker. She took it without hesitation. She considers the crew of that ship her extended family and is still incredibly close to everyone she served with aboard the USS Skywalker.

In 2377, she was promoted to Commander and named Liaison Officer aboard SS Valhalla as part of the Diplomatic Corps. She is the liaison between the offices of the Corps and the offices of the FDTF, the link between the politics and the military.

After a battle with Section 31 on Deep Space Nine, her long time friend Batya died and Kelly was given custody of Liadan.

Her relationship with Ethan Corrigan rekindled again after a little boy named Ian entered the picture. Ian is from the mirror universe, the son of the mirror Ethan and the mirror Kelly. He needed the both of them to get through this sudden change in everything, and in being there to support Ian, Ethan and Kelly found themselves falling back into the way things used to be. Older and more mature, they were able to keep their relationship strong despite being apart for long periods of time. As time passed, the four of them turned into a family without really even noticing. They all make their home on Hyperion.

Ethan and Kelly are getting married in May of 2379.