Francis Fulton Kernan, Jr, 92, recently of St. Marys, GA, passed away on December 6, 2025, only 4 days after the funeral mass for his wife of almost 65 years, Mary.

Frank (or Butch, as he was known by his Pittsburgh family) was born on June 27, 1933, in Pittsburgh, PA to the late Francis F. Kernan, Sr and Gertrude (Carmody) Kernan. He had lived in the Columbia, SC area since the fall of 2018 after spending 20+ years in Winchester, VA and almost 30 years in Northern Virginia.

At the end of prohibition, Frank's parents opened a beer distributor business in Morningside, PA. His tales of "working at the beer store" were probably his best anecdotes. Stories of the antics of the beer store and making deliveries to a variety of customers in the beer truck were interesting and entertaining!

Like his mother and father before him, Frank attended Pennsylvania State University.  He graduated in 1956 with a BS degree in Industrial Engineering.  He was a member of the Catholic fraternity at PSU and liked to reminisce about fun times, especially having to sleep in the attic room of the frat house and hitchhiking from State College to his home in Oakmont.

Following graduation from PSU, Frank moved to Emporium, PA, and embarked on a career with Sylvania Electronics.  It was there that Frank met Mary Scott while doing audits for the company in the department where Mary worked.

Mary and Frank were married in 1961.  After spending several enjoyable years in Emporium, they moved a few times for Frank's jobs before settling in Northern Virginia in 1967.  They lived outside of DC and Frank carpooled to his federal job at the Department of Veterans Affairs.  He retired from the VA in 1996, pulled up roots, and moved to Winchester, VA in the Shenandoah Valley.

Frank was a member of the Knights of Columbus and an avid volunteer in the Winchester community, both at the Medical Center and his church.  He also helped with tax preparation for seniors and a multitude of other volunteer opportunities his wife had both of them participate in.  But Frank never lost his love for everything Pittsburgh - be it Iron City Beer, Isaly Dairy Company Klondike Bars, the Pittsburgh Pirates or the Steelers.

He still had his Pittsburgh accent, and it got particularly heavy when he went back home to Oakmont or was around his sisters.  Being a Virginian for so long helped him develop an appreciation for the Washington Redskins and the Nationals, but his favorite sports team remained Happy Valley's PSU Nittany Lions.  His home office was decorated in everything PSU Nittany white and blue.

Frank was proud of his Irish heritage, his family hailing from County Cork, Ireland.  He loved the big family gatherings back in Oakmont, PA along the Allegheny River.  He was always up for a game of cards.  His favorite being pinochle, but gin rummy, poker or bridge were ok too.  He enjoyed working crosswords and sudoku puzzles, as well as golfing and bowling, provided it stayed friendly.

PapPap (as he was called) loved children of all ages, but especially his grandchildren and great grandchildren.  First came Ricky then Faith Kernan and when Ricky married Bailey, they blessed Frank with two great grandsons, Weston and Kellan. Small children always seemed drawn to Frank.  They seemed to have the intuition that he was safe and fun with a genuine warmth about him.  Frank didn't mind the kids climbing all over him like a big teddy bear or having a chase with them.

Frank is survived by his two children Kathleen Brown (Ray) of Woodbine, Ga and Richard Kernan (Bernice) of Blythewood, SC, two grandchildren, Richard Kernan (Bailey) of Colorado Springs, CO and Faith Kernan of Charleston SC and great grandchildren, Weston and Kellan Kernan, as well as two sisters, Patricia Blough (John) of Oakmont, PA and Kathleen Anger (Terry) of Bend, OR.  He was preceded in death by his wife Mary, one sister and one brother-in-law, Mary Lou Dunlay (Jim).  Uncle Frank (or Uncle Butch) was a good man, a good role model and will be missed by many, many nieces, nephews and great nieces and nephews.

A funeral mass will be held at Our Lady Star of the Sea Catholic Church, St Mary's GA on Friday, December 12 at 10 am. Graveside services will be held at a later time in Winchester, VA.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Knights of Columbus or Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Winchester, VA.

Allison Memorial Chapel is in charge of the arrangements.