Sister Ernestine Kerch, age 81, a member of the Franciscan Sisters of Christian
Charity, died Friday morning, June 27, 2003, at Holy Family Convent, Manitowoc.
Funeral services will be held at 10:30 a.m. Monday, June 30, 2003, at Holy Family
Convent Chapel, Manitowoc. Officiating at the Mass of Christian Burial will be
the Rev. DePaul Sobotka, OFM with burial at Holy Family Convent Cemetery,
Manitowoc.
She was born March 17, 1922, in St. Anna, Wis., daughter of the late Paul and
Theresa Urling Kerch. She entered the convent in 1936 and professed her vows in
1940. Sister Ernestine earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Holy Family College,
Manitowoc, and a Master of Arts degree in library science from Rosary College,
Chicago, Ill. Sister Ernestine served as a teacher at Sacred Heart, Manitowoc;
St. Mary, Kaukauna; St. John, Seymour; St. Joseph, Rice Lake; Sacred Heart, Oshkosh;
St. John, Antigo; and as a librarian at St. Willibrord, Chicago, Ill.; Catholic
Memorial High School, Waukesha; Holy Family Convent, Manitowoc; Silver Lake College,
Manitowoc; Roncalli High School, Manitowoc; Xavier High School, Appleton; St. Mary,
Bloomington; Catholic Central, Rhinelander; Holy Hill, Hubertus, Wis.; and Ironwood
Catholic High School, Ironwood, Mich. She retired to the Motherhouse in May 2003.
She is a member of the Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity.
Survivors include the Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity; two sisters: Sister
Leo Kerch, OSF and Sister Angelo Kerch, OSF, both of Manitowoc; and brother and
sister-in-law; Nicholas and Jane Kerch, Westfield, Wis. Also surviving are nieces,
nephews, other relatives and friends.
The family will greet relatives and friends at Holy Family Convent, Manitowoc, from
4 to 8 p.m. Sunday where a prayer service will be held at 7 p.m. at Holy Family
Convent Chapel.
The Pfeffer Funeral Home & Cremation Care Center, Manitowoc, is assisting the family
with funeral arrangements.
Herald Times Reporter, June 28, 2003