A promising professional hockey career was shortened by an industrial accident, but it did not keep Gordon Clifford Kerr from making a lasting impression in his favourite sport. He took up refereeing and went on to become a leader not only in officiating but also in the training and development of the refereeing community in Manitoba hockey circles.

Born in Winnipeg on May 12, 1932, Kerr played his minor hockey for the West End Orioles. He played in the minor pro system of the Montreal Canadiens for several years before he lost two fingers in an accident at his job with the Manitoba Telephone System.

He started officiating in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League in 1957 and also refereed minor, intermediate and senior hockey throughout the province and the NCAA Division 1 college hockey. He was a linesman in the professional Western Hockey League and the World Hockey Association in the 1970s.

In 1962, Kerr was appointed Referee-In- Chief of the Manitoba Amateur Hockey Association. At the time, there were 120 referees registered with the MAHA. When he retired in 1990, there were 1,800 registered referees. He was admired for his dedication to his position as head official in the province and kept detailed records of the refereeing assignments throughout the years. In recognition of his years of service, he was inducted into the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame in 1990.

“As a player and as a referee he was always respected by so many teams and individuals,” said Frank McKinnon, who was president of the MAHA from 1970 to 1975. “His game management was one of the best I ever encountered and I would rate Gord Kerr as one of the best in the refereeing business. We always had great respect for his expertise in officiating. He was really unprecedented in his dealings with his peers. I always felt his sincerity and his respect for others.”

In addition to his outstanding performance in Manitoba, Kerr was also highly regarded as a hockey official on the national and international scene. He officiated at the 1959 and 1962 Memorial Cup junior playoffs, the 1964 Allan Cup senior playoffs, the 1964 Edmonton Journal intermediate championship and the 1965 Centennial Cup and Canadian University championship. He officiated at two Winter Olympic competitions – in 1972 at Sapporo, Japan and in 1976 at Innsbruck, Austria.

Following his retirement from the hockey scene in 1990, he turned his attention to golf, his other favourite sport. With his wife Sheila, he moved to Kelowna, BC, to enjoy the longer golf seasons and was soon involved with that sport. He was popular and highly respected as an official greeter at the Harvest Golf Club for several seasons.

Gordon Kerr passed away on December 22, 2006, in Kelowna.