Public relations professional, local activist Cathy Kerns dies
Legendary comedian Joan Rivers was hobbling with an aluminum cane at an Orlando TV station when she spotted Cathy Kerns sporting a floral cane of her own making.
The “style sticks” were made of clear Lucite and filled with confetti or flower garlands to match the immaculate outfits of Kerns, then in her 30s and fighting multiple sclerosis.
“[Rivers] wanted to rush right out and buy one,” Kerns, of Orlando, said in an interview years later. “They weren’t in the stores at the time, so I made her one. Metallic gold and black.”
The longtime advertising, marketing and public-relations professional and activist — admired for her work on behalf of seniors and the less fortunate — died Tuesday of unknown causes. She was 68.
“Before LGBTQ was accepted and I was trying to get a candidate endorsement, Cathy was one of the few people who came out and said, ‘You know, she’s really good, I’ve worked with her on the issues,’ ” said City Commissioner Patty Sheehan, who became Orlando’s first openly gay elected official in 2000.
“When I broke my leg she made a rainbow-style stick for me,” Sheehan said.
Friends and colleagues described Kerns as “passionate,” with a community service record that could make an Eagle Scout proud.
The Ohio native was active at St. Michael’s Episcopal Church in College Park, her neighborhood association and AARP Florida’s executive council.
Last month, she was nominated to chair the Mayor’s Committee on Aging, a board