John "Brud" KERR

KERR, John 'Brud'


John Garner 'Brud' Kerr shuffled off this mortal coil on Saturday, January 28th, two days short of his 86th birthday. He leaves the love of his life, Camille, after nearly 60 years of marriage, his children Kim Beatty (David) and Doug Kerr (Lisa) and four grandsons, of whom he was enormously proud, Christopher, Chas, Geoffrey and Iain. John was predeceased by his sisters, Louise and Margie and is survived by a large extended family, including his sister and brother-in-law, Barbie and Nelson Praill and his niece Kerri Gallo. John was born in Chatham, Ontario and followed in the footsteps of his father and grandfather to make a career in law. John established a successful law practice in London, Ontario, Beechie Kerr & Madison, and was appointed a Judge of the Ontario District Court in 1983. During his twenty-three year career as a judge, John 'the Hammer' Kerr sat in courthouses from Windsor to Kingston. He established himself as a gifted jurist. He had an exceptional intellect, a tremendous capacity for wisdom, compassion and fairness and one excellent sense of humour. Many family and friends (and even some nurses in his last days in the St. Joseph's Hospice) will recall with a smile his frequent jokes and clever stories. John was a raconteur of the highest order and particularly excelled at entertaining friends and family on the back porch of his beloved cottage, the Erie Breeze, at Erieau, Ontario. John spent his childhood growing up in Erieau and was an accomplished (and very competitive) sailor. John loved to ski and especially enjoyed regular trips to Aspen where he and Camille enjoyed the Colorado ski conditions and its lively après ski culture. John had a wide circle of friends and admirers including friends at the Erieau Yacht Club, the London Club, the Sagimace Country Club in Manitoba, fellow sunset watchers at Casa Del Mar at Long Boat Key, Florida and the Bluewater Club in London. John lived life to its fullest and was able to enjoy his daily martini right up to the end. He is undoubtedly sharing a cocktail now, with his dear friends Bill, Jerry and Don! The family would like to thank Dr. John Jordan and his team at the Byron Family Medical Centre, the homecare palliative nursing team led by Christine and the dedicated and caring staff and volunteers at St. Joseph's Hospice in London, Ontario. A celebration of John's life will take place at the London Hunt Club (1431 Oxford St. W., London), Saturday February 4, 2017 from 1:00 to 4:00 and an old fashioned Erieau wake will take place in Erieau this coming summer. In lieu of flowers the family requests that donations in John's memory be made to St. Joseph's Hospice at www.sjhospicelondon.com, 485 Windermere Rd., PO Box 1449, Station B., London, ON N5X 2T1. Arrangements entrusted to Needham Funeral Services.
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