Deborah Ann Kerr

Deborah Ann Kerr, 58, died peacefully on May 9, 2018, at her childhood home in Waitsfield, with her family by her side.

She was born in St. Johnsbury in September 1959.

Debbie was an avid athlete. While attending Harwood Union High School (Class of 1977), she played basketball and competed on the ski team. At New England College, she also played basketball and taught skiing at Pats Peak.

Throughout her life, she loved to ski the mountains of the Mad River Valley and enjoyed ski trips to various Western mountain destinations. She had a passion for golf and always took the opportunity to play whenever she could. She liked watching sports, especially football, and was a loyal New England Patriots fan.

Debbie was named to the Who’s Who of American Universities and Colleges while attending New England College, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in geology in 1981. She earned a master’s degree in engineering management in 1983 from Boston College and she was certified as a project management professional. She also worked toward her doctorate at George Washington University.

Debbie had a very successful career in the field of engineering and traveled the world, working in multiple locations. She was able to retire early in 2013, from her last position at Science Applications International Corp., where she was an assistant vice president and engineering division manager.

In 2016, Debbie moved from Reston, Va., where she had lived for many years, to a golf community in Eatonton, Ga., where she played golf year-round and enjoyed traveling with family and friends.

She especially loved visiting her parents and family in Waitsfield, and made frequent trips home. She spent much of her free time observing and studying animals, birdwatching with her mother, and always took extra time to watch her favorites, hawks and eagles.

Her partner, Ed Dillon, died in 2006.

Survivors include her parents, Tom and Colleen Kerr; her siblings, Cathy, Jimmy and wife Jill, Brian and wife Molly Mahar, Becky Smith and husband Jay; and many nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, donations would be appreciated to Central Vermont Home Health and Hospice cvhhh.org) or Wellstar Neuro Rehabilitation in Marietta, Ga. (wellstar.org/foundation). Perkins-Parker Funeral Home and Cremation Service in Waterbury is assisting the family.

To send online condolences: perkinsparker.com or the funeral home’s Facebook page.