Philip Kerr

February 24, 1937 - September 16, 2020

Philip Kerr, 83 of Winter Park, FL and formerly of Daytona Beach Shores, passed away peacefully in the morning on September 16, 2020 at Advent Hospital in Winter Park following farewell visits by his family. He was born in Brooklyn, NY, the son of the late Morris and Fanny (Klein) Kerr. He was a loving husband and devoted father/grandfather. He is survived and dearly missed by his wife, Barbara (Bechtle) Kerr, Winter Park, FL; daughters Regina Mohan, her husband Vishnu, and their daughters Maya and Asha of Beaverton, OR; Stacy Kerr of Boston, MA; Leslie Kerr and her partner Matthew Gore of Needham, MA; and Andrea Meincke, her husband Mike, and their son Joshua of Orlando, FL. He was predeceased by his brother Frederick Kerr of London, England and formerly Miami, FL. Philip was something of a renaissance man. He grew up in Brooklyn and graduated high school at the age of 16. He moved to Florida to attend the University of Miami, working on the police force while studying architecture. He received his BBA in Architecture at age 20 and went on to design many homes in Maitland, Winter Park, and Orlando. He continued to work in architecture and real estate development for the most of his career. He met his wife, Barbara, in Orlando soon after graduating college and the two were best friends for their 60 years of marriage. Barbara was a partner in all of his adventures including some business ventures. Philip’s great sense of adventure led him to take a year off so that he and Barbara could bring the family on a year-long journey on the family boat, Summer Place. After completing this voyage, he relocated the family to Savannah and converted an old warehouse on the Savannah River into a restaurant, The Great Savannah Ice Cream and Steamship Company. The restaurant was welcomed wholeheartedly by the community, but Philip was soon ready for a new family adventure. This time, his brother, Freddy, lured him to California for a summer visit that lasted six years. Philip turned in his restauranteur hat and returned to real estate development in San Francisco and Sonoma. After this, he and the family returned to Florida, where Philip designed communities in Palm Coast while working as VP of Development for ITT Community Development Corporation. He always enjoyed a building, renovation, or home repair project. Phil had a variety of interests. In his younger years, he obtained his pilot’s license and flew his own planes, enjoyed boating, and loved exotic cars. He enjoyed horseback riding and was an animal lover who was partial to hounds. Phil was fond of bringing the family bloodhound, Winston, with him for late night spins around Maitland when these cars were running. He loved to travel with Barb, and was a connoisseur of single malt Whiskey, so they spent many a vacation in the UK discovering new distilleries. He was a history buff who loved reading about current events, particularly in The Washington Post and The New Yorker, and was knowledgeable about any topic other than professional sports. The family will treasure their memories of him and will honor him in a private celebration of his life. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in his memory to http://alldogrescue.org/ either online or c/o All Dog Rescue, Inc., PO Box 2072, Natick, MA 01760.