Sister Mary Peter Kerner, 79, teacher and social worker
Sister Mary Peter Kerner, 79, a teacher and social worker who found ways to help those living on society's fringes, died Saturday, Oct. 31, of a stroke at Assisi House in Aston.
Sister Mary Peter Kerner, 79, a teacher and social worker who found ways to help those living on society's fringes, died Saturday, Oct. 31, of a stroke at Assisi House in Aston.
She had been a member of the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia for 58 years.
Born Frances Victoria Kerner in Philadelphia, she graduated from John W. Hallahan Catholic Girls High School.
Sister Mary Peter earned a bachelor's degree in English from Neumann University in 1970 and a master's degree in social work from the Catholic University of America in Washington in 1976.
She worked primarily in the fields of education and social services for 46 years within the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.
"Whether she was working as a teacher or a social worker, Sister Mary Peter ministered for much of her life among people who are economically poor and who live on the fringes of society," said her colleague Sister Ann Marie Slavin.
"Even in her work with our Mission Fund, she was always finding ways to subsidize the sisters who were working with those who are underserved."
The Philadelphia County Medical Society honored Sister Mary Peter with the Benjamin Rush Award, and La Rabida Council gave her the Knights of Columbus Woman of the Year Award.
She taught at St. Vincent School, St. Elizabeth School, and St. Benedict School and engaged in social work at St. Francis Xavier Parish.
From 1978 to 1981, she worked on the Archdiocesan Commission for Human Relations as associate director for race relations.
Sister Mary Peter did needs assessment at St. Mary Medical Center in Langhorne and served as house leader at the Bethesda Project in the mid-1990s. The Bethesda Project provides shelter, housing, and programs for chronically homeless men and women in Philadelphia.
Within the Sisters of St. Francis, Sister Mary Peter served on the provincial council for the former Immaculate Conception Province, was administrator of the order's Mission Fund, and was director of the Bachmann Project.
Her efforts on that project led directly to the development and opening of Anna's Place, a gathering spot for people who frequent the area in and around Chester.
Sister Mary Peter is survived by her brother, Ed Kerner, and nieces and nephews.
A 10:30 a.m. prayer service Wednesday, Nov. 4, is to be followed by a Funeral Mass at noon in Our Lady of Angels Convent Chapel, 609 S. Convent Rd., Aston. Burial is in Our Lady of Angels Cemetery.
Donations may be made to the Sisters of St. Francis Foundation, 609 S. Convent Rd., Aston, Pa. 19014.
610-313-8102