JOHN W. KESSLER (1919-2001)

John W. Kessler joined the Y movement in 1946, when he began serving as director of the YMCA’s Lighton Club in Kansas City, Mo. Raised by his mother, the first woman in Missouri to become a high school principal, Kessler was strongly influenced by his two uncles, both Methodist ministers. His childhood visits to the poor families in the Missouri countryside played a large role in shaping his Y career.

Kessler learned a great deal about the plight of the poor working class, and his motivation to help those in need led him to the YMCA. He earned his undergraduate degree from Southeast Missouri State University in 1940 and his graduate degree in group work administration from George Williams College in 1948. He served at the Lighton Club until 1949, when he became the adult program director at the Huntington Avenue Branch of the YMCA in Boston, Mass. He then went on to serve as president of the Fitchburg YMCA from 1954 to 1958, president of the YMCA of the USA, New England Region from 1958 to 1962, and president of the Oak Park, Ill. YMCA until 1969.

In 1969, Kessler became president of the Minneapolis YMCA, where he remained until 1983. While at the helm in Minneapolis, Kessler raised $42 million and saw to the construction of six new YMCAs in his region. Kessler was the first individual to raise funds for the Y by building a board of directors consisting of professionals capable of attracting major gifts.

In 1984, Kessler took on the difficult task of providing leadership to his alma mater, George Williams College, at a time when its closure was imminent. He oversaw the college’s transition within Aurora University in Chicago, Ill.

He was instrumental in the creation of the Urban Group Association of larger YMCAs and was chairman of the Urban Group for four terms, from 1972 to 1975. He also served on the National Board of the YMCA of the USA for seven years. Kessler was a delegate to the 1976 World Alliance and to the East-West Initiative in 1978. He served as a consultant to the YMCA in Singapore in 1980. He received an honorary doctorate of Humanics from Springfield College in 1985.

In his nearly two-decade career with the Y, Kessler’s administrative talents and his faith in those with whom he worked remained evident. Through his work with the YMCA, Kessler’s desire to help improve the quality of life for all was fulfilled.