John Kern Obituary

Kern, John Charles Aged 93, of Chicago, Illinois passed away surrounded by his family on January 20, 2019 at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago. John was born in Chicago to Herbert Arthur and Edith (Speckman) Kern and grew up in Hinsdale, Illinois. He married Anne Rumsey Moreland in West Hartford, Connecticut on September 13, 1958. John attended Northwestern Military & Naval Academy, in Lake Geneva, WI where he graduated in June of 1943, and then immediately enlisted in the US army. Upon returning from Europe at the close of World War II, an Infantry sergeant with three battle stars, John attended MIT, graduating in 1950 in chemical engineering and business. He did post graduate study from 1951-1953 at the Harvard Business School, and Northwestern University from 1969-1971 in Organization Theory. He had a successful technically-oriented business career spanning the development of international standards, Marketing Research, Human Engineering, Product Planning, R & D Management, and Consulting. John also became quite involved in community activities, chairing the Hinsdale Community Chest, helping to merge it with the surrounding small villages; moving on to becoming an officer of the Suburban Community Chest Council, member of Chicago's Crusade of Mercy Board, co-founding the United Way of Illinois and the First Risk Pooling Trust. The past fifty-three years John also has directed the foundation his father established for encouraging the study and broader knowledge of Theosophy. Central to the concerns of Theosophy is the desire to promote understanding and good relations among people of all races, nationalities, philosophies, and religions. John also served as Chair of the Theosophical Investment Trust. In addition to providing major support for the Theosophical Society and the Krotona Institute of Theosophy, The Kern Foundation has provided grants to Harvard's Center for the Study of World Religions, the California Institute of Asian Studies (John was a former Vice Chair), Loyola University Chicago and the University of Chicago for Doctoral Fellowships. John served their Libraries' Visiting Committees as a Life Member along with his wife Anne. He is a former Vice President and Secretary & continues to serve as a Life Trustee of the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago; as well as MIT's Council for the Arts. John had a great zest for life and particularly for the latest thing, whether it be art, architecture, clothing, a fancy car, classical music, or an electronic gadget. Unfailingly polite and kind, he was an old school gentleman with a modern sensibility. He loved sharing meals with his family and close friends and always had room for dessert, with perhaps an extra scoop of ice cream. John is survived by his wife of 60 years, Anne, his three children, Elizabeth (Doug) Chalmers of Hinsdale, IL., John, Jr. "Jay" (Katie) Kern of Ross, CA, and Louise Kern (Thomas Grischany) of Vienna, Austria, six grandchildren, Elinor and Henry Chalmers, John III, Libby, and Charles Kern, and Rupert Grischany. He was predeceased by his brother Herb. Memorial service, 5:30pm on Saturday, April 13 at the Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E. Chicago Avenue, Chicago, 60611. Arrangements by Cremation Society of Illinois, 773-281-5058 or www.cremation-society.com.