Msgr. Kerr’s funeral Mass draws overflow crowd

The 68-year-old priest was remembered as a dynamic, committed priest and global citizen who ministered to the weak and the powerful in equal measure.

PEGGY DEKEYSER | FLORIDA CATHOLIC PENSACOLA-TALLAHASSEE BUREAU EDITOR

Posted: 05.19.09

PEGGY DEKEYSER | FC
Bishop John H. Ricard, SSJ, censes the coffin at Msgr. William Kerr’s funeral Mass at the Co-Cathedral of St. Thomas More May 19.

TALLAHASSEE | He was a man whose life touched those of world leaders and sports legends and those of refugees from war-torn countries, homesick students and everyday, ordinary people. To all, he was a friend, a leader, a man of peace, a quiet, generous man who was at home in his faith no matter where in the world his ministry took him. Msgr. William A. Kerr Jr., was buried May 19 here, following a funeral Mass that filled the Co-Cathedral of St. Thomas More to overflowing.

Msgr. Kerr suffered a stroke Sunday, May 3, shortly after he completed his homily during Mass at the Co-Cathedral of St. Thomas More. He was hospitalized in intensive care until his death May 13.

Msgr. William A. Kerr Jr.

Bishop John H. Ricard, SSJ, was the principal celebrant of the Mass of Christian Burial. Along with the priests of the Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee, Bishop Martin D. Holley, auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Washington, concelebrated.

In his homily, Msgr. Stephen Bosso, a priest of the diocese serving at St. Vincent de Paul Regional Seminary in Boynton Beach, compared Msgr. Kerr to a strong, spreading oak tree, with its branches reaching out and extending far and wide. “It’s in those branches that we all have found a place to nest. With all that he did in life, he didn’t do it for himself. He did it for all of us. He loved life, and most of all he loved challenging people to bring their own gifts to fruition, to develop and live out their faith.”

Recalling Msgr. Kerr’s life, Msgr. Bosso said that most people knew him because of his priesthood and his response to God’s call to serve. “He touched all of us. He rose in the morning and offered 7 a.m. Mass, then went to breakfast. And you never knew who might be at breakfast. It could be the president of the (Florida) Senate and a (college) junior from Jasper, Florida. Whether diplomacy influenced his faith or his faith influenced his diplomacy, I don’t know. We are fortunate to have been recipients of both.”

At the conclusion of the funeral Mass, Bishop Ricard praised Msgr. Kerr as an ordinary man of extraordinary talents. “He was as comfortable with heads of state as he was with heads of households. I asked him once how students were selected to participate in the exchange program he established that brought Rwandan students to the U.S. He replied that the one quality he looked for was generosity. ‘All the rest can be taught,’ he said. If I were to sum up Msgr. Kerr, a difficult task, the one most enduring quality is generosity. His was a life characterized by his consistent generosity. His entire life as a priest was spent answering ‘yes’ to God, and on May 13, he gave his final yes and responded to God’s call. He is joined forever in union with Christ. That was always his ultimate goal – to unite all in Christ.”

Friends from the time when one was a seminarian and the other the quarterback for the U.S. Naval Academy football team, Msgr. Kerr spent many Thanksgiving holidays with Roger Staubach and his family. The former Dallas Cowboys quarterback choked back emotion as he told the assembly that Msgr. Kerr “got up every day and gave a darn about someone other than himself – everyone else. He tried to fit over 100 years of living into just 68. He made everyone feel that he was their best friend and that they possessed greatness and he believed in that greatness.” As a young naval officer, Staubach traveled to Tallahassee to be an altar server at Msgr. Kerr’s first Mass at Blessed Sacrament Parish. Although they didn’t always agree on political issues, Msgr. Kerr always “had a commitment to always love one another, no matter our differences,” Staubach said.

Reading from a letter from Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan, Bishop Ricard quoted “Msgr. Kerr’s dynamic life was an inspiration. May his ultimate legacy be the continuation of his mission to bring people together to build peace.”

In recognition of Msgr. Kerr’s peace-building work with Rwanda, the Rwandan ambassador to the United States, James Kimonyo, and the Rwandan minister of health, Dr. Richard Sezibera, represented the president of their nation at the funeral.

Born Sept. 22, 1940, in St. Louis to William A. Kerr and Dolores J. Moore Kerr, both now deceased, Msgr. Kerr was ordained a priest March 26, 1966, by Cardinal Joseph Ritter in St. Louis. In addition to a bachelor’s degree from Cardinal Glennon College Seminary in St. Louis and a sacred theology licentiate from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., Msgr. Kerr earned a master’s degree in international affairs from the School of Advanced International Studies of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore and a doctorate in American history from Florida State University in Tallahassee. He was named a monsignor in October 1980.

Beginning his priestly ministry in St. Louis, Msgr. Kerr was associate pastor of St. Mary Magdalene Parish there. Following graduate studies at The Catholic University, he returned to St. Louis where he was assigned as associate pastor at St. Pius V Parish. From 1971 to 1975 he served as associate pastor and administrator of St. Thomas More Parish in Tallahassee, while the parish was part of the Diocese of St. Augustine. In 1975, with the establishment of the Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee, St. Thomas More became the co-cathedral of the new diocese and Msgr. Kerr served as rector until 1984. He also served as director of vocations providing the young diocese with its first priests, one of whom is Bishop Holley.

From 1984 to 1992, Msgr. Kerr served as vice-president of The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. In 1992, he assumed the presidency of LaRoche College in Pittsburgh, a post he held until 2004. In 2004, he returned to the nation’s capital to become the executive director of the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center. In 2006 he returned to Tallahassee to become the executive director of the Claude Pepper Center for Intercultural Dialogue at the Florida State University. In April 2009, he was appointed president of John Paul II High School in Tallahassee while continuing his service at Florida State.

Msgr. Kerr was remembered as a dynamic, committed priest and global citizen who ministered to the weak and the powerful in equal measure. He saw the greatness in all persons with whom he interacted and helped them believe in their own greatness. He was a highly regarded teacher and scholar whose original work contributed to historical understanding. While his life was short, he lived it fully and well, working tirelessly on behalf of a peaceful world. Two of the many notable initiatives that emerged through Msgr. Kerr’s remarkable vision were the Pacem in Terris Institute at LaRoche College and the Dialogue Initiative at Florida State University, aimed at fostering hope for the young people of the world and promoting global understanding.

Msgr. Kerr was buried at Roselawn Cemetery in Tallahassee next to his beloved parents. Memorial donations may be made to: John Paul II Catholic High School, 5100 Terrebone Drive, Tallahassee, FL 32311 or to the Co-Cathedral of St. Thomas More to establish and sustain the Msgr. William A. Kerr Memorial Fund, P.O. Box 2395, Tallahassee, FL 32316.

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