Col. John B. Kerr, Jr., 1954 (Tennis)
Col. John B. Kerr Jr. graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in education and physical education in 1954. He was selected to be a member of the 1951 Orange freshman baseball team, but the schedule was cancelled. During next three years he dominated the court, as a member of the varsity tennis team. In 1952 and 1953 he played No. 3 singles and No. 2 doubles. In 1954 he was elected team captain and played No. 1 singles and No. 1 doubles. During his tenure as a student Col. Kerr worked full-time in order to finance his education and was a member of Phi Delta Theta. Col. Kerr was also very active in intramural sports through his fraternity which won championships in football, basketball, swimming, track and ping-pong. Col. Kerr was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Air Force (through ROTC) following graduation from Syracuse. He entered active duty in April, 1955 and served until June, 1982, serving our country for more than 27 years in the U.S. Air Force. He began a 16-year flying career primarily as an instructor, flight examiner and flying standardization management positions. Col. Kerr logged just more than 9,300 hours as a USAF Pilot. He flew a combat tour in Vietnam and Cambodia. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and nine Air Medals for his service in Southeast Asia. He worked for a company in Santa Fe (CA) before forming his own company, Kerr Executive Recruiting, in 1996. A prostate cancer survivor, Col. Kerr is very active in his community as a frequent speaker at the Southern California Prostate Support Group meetings, and was featured in the PBS documentary "A Journey of Hope" in June, 1999. The program detailed how prostate cancer has devastated so many families. Since 1997, Col. Kerr has served as a volunteer reader in the San Bernardino California Elementary School System.
