Alfred Henry "Al" Kerth III (January 21, 1952 - September 11, 2002) was a
St. Louis civic leader and public relations executive. His projects included bringing the
St. Louis Rams
The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis from 1995 to the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, where the team had played from 1946 to 1994.
The arri ...
NFL
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...
team to St. Louis, the
St. Louis MetroLink
MetroLink is the Greater St. Louis Metropolitan mass transit system serving Missouri and the Metro East area of Illinois. The system consists of two rail lines (Red Line and Blue Line) connecting St. Louis Lambert International Airport and ...
light rail public transit system, St. Louis 2004,
Forest Park
A forest park is a park whose main theme is its forest of trees. Forest parks are found both in the mountains and in the urban environment.
Examples Chile
* Forest Park, Santiago
China
*Gongqing Forest Park, Shanghai
* Mufushan National Fores ...
Forever, the
X Prize, Civic Progress, the
Scottrade Center
The Enterprise Center is an 18,096-seat arena located in downtown St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Its primary tenant is the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League, but it is also used for other functions, such as NCAA basketball, NCA ...
, and the
Edward Jones Dome
The Dome at America's Center is a multi-purpose stadium used for concerts, major conventions, and sporting events in Downtown St. Louis, downtown St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Previously known as the Trans World Dome from 1995 to 2001 and ...
. He also served on the boards of numerous civic groups, including the
United Way,
The Salvation Army
The Salvation Army (TSA) is a Protestant church and an international charitable organisation headquartered in London, England. The organisation reports a worldwide membership of over 1.7million, comprising soldiers, officers and adherents col ...
,
Laumeier Sculpture Park
Laumeier Sculpture Park is a 105-acre open-air museum and sculpture park located in Sunset Hills, Missouri, near St. Louis and is maintained in partnership with St. Louis County Parks and Recreation Department. It houses over 60 outdoor sculptu ...
, Area Resources for Community and Human Services, and Forest Park Forever.
Life
Kerth, a member of the fifth generation of the Kerth family of Saint Louis, received a bachelor's degree in economics from the
University of Missouri–St. Louis
The University of Missouri–St. Louis (UMSL) is a public research university in St. Louis, Missouri. Established in 1963, it is one of four universities in the University of Missouri System and its newest. Located on the former grounds of Bel ...
and a master's degree in urban studies from
Occidental College
Occidental College (informally Oxy) is a private liberal arts college in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1887 as a coeducational college by clergy and members of the Presbyterian Church, it became non-sectarian in 1910. It is one of the oldes ...
in Los Angeles.
From 1977 to 1987, he worked for the former Centerre Bank in public relations, marketing and community affairs. His grandfather, Al Kerth, had founded Chesterfield Bank, which eventually became part of Centerre Bank.
From 1987 to 1998, he was a senior partner at
Fleishman-Hillard. The public relations firm's world headquarters is in downtown St. Louis.
From 1989 to 1998, he was secretary to
Civic Progress, an influential organization of the area's top business executives. He served as its spokesman and political liaison during negotiations to build the indoor football stadium, the Edward Jones Dome, as well as the new hockey and basketball arena, now known as the Scottrade Center. He also was a key player in the efforts to bring a professional football team to St. Louis after the Cardinals left for Arizona.
From 1998 until his death, he was president and chief executive of The Eads Center. A nonprofit public affairs consultancy he founded, designed to provide strategic counsel to groups that would bolster St. Louis, such as not-for-profit and community organizations.
Death
At the time of his death, former U.S. Sen.
John Danforth with whom Mr. Kerth often collaborated on public projects, was quoted as saying: "Al Kerth was St. Louis' most important civic resource ... "He was the person who, first of all, could conceive big ideas for St. Louis. He was also the person who could sell those ideas – to civic leaders, the broader community, to politicians."
[Tim O'Neil, "St. Louis, Mo., Public Relations Executive Found Dead", '']St. Louis Post-Dispatch
The ''St. Louis Post-Dispatch'' is a major regional newspaper based in St. Louis, Missouri, serving the St. Louis metropolitan area. It is the largest daily newspaper in the metropolitan area by circulation, surpassing the ''Belleville News-Dem ...
'', September 11, 2002.
References
External links
* Weiss, Richard H. "Al Kerth: Public Man, Private Struggle". ''
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
The ''St. Louis Post-Dispatch'' is a major regional newspaper based in St. Louis, Missouri, serving the St. Louis metropolitan area. It is the largest daily newspaper in the metropolitan area by circulation, surpassing the ''Belleville News-Dem ...
'', August, 2003. Reprinte
here
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kerth, Al
1952 births
2002 deaths
University of Missouri–St. Louis alumni
Occidental College alumni
People from St. Louis