1928 – 2003

FARMINGTON – Harry Price Kerr of Farmington died peacefully at home June 6, after a long illness.

Born in Buffalo, N.Y., June 2, 1928, the only child of Harry Price and Viola (Phillips) Kerr, he graduated from St. Joseph’s Collegiate Institute in Buffalo and received his undergraduate and graduate degrees from Cornell, where he met Roslyn Meserentino. They were married June 10, 1952.

Before completing his Ph.D., he served two years in the Army’s Counter Intelligence Corps. In 1958, he took a position at Harvard University. During his 13 years at Harvard, he became a tenured professor of rhetoric and public speaking.

He and his family moved to Farmington in 1971, where he taught interpersonal communication, public speaking and related courses at UMF and served as interim provost at UMF and Fort Kent. One of his early joys was directing the Readers Theater.

In his retirement, he spent many happy hours building furniture for family in his beloved workshop and helped his son build two homes in Farmington and restored the old Gray Fox Lodge as his retirement home.

Survivors include two sons, Bob and his wife, Kathy and Jeff and his fiancee, Linda Seelye, all of Farmington; his daughter, Linda Kerr and her husband, Daniel Toomey of Putney, Vt.; three grandchildren, Lauren Kerr, Emily Kerr and C. Angelika Toomey; and his good young friend, Chelsye Seelye, who remembers his joy in their visits. He is also survived by his second wife, Patrica E. Lord Kerr and her family.

Copy the Story Link