First Woman to Head Crystal Lake Chamber of Commerce Dies at Age 90

Arlene Kerns, who is remembered for her love of Crystal Lake and who was the first woman to ever head the city’s Chamber of Commerce, has died at the age of 90.

Kerns died in her home on Monday. She was born in Chicago and moved to Crystal Lake in 1940 where she remained for the rest of her life, according to her obituary.

Though, at first she was hesitant to take over a position that was considered a “man’s job,” in 1974, Kerns became the Crystal Lake Chamber of Commerce’s first executive manager who was a woman, the Northwest Herald reports. She would continue to lead the chamber until 1985.

“She kind of blazed the trail for a lot of things,” Shirley Burnett, who Kerns hired in the 1970s, told the Northwest Herald.

“I think she was fair, and she’d give you a job and let you do it,” Burnett said. “She didn’t second-guess things, and she was appreciative of what you did.”

Kerns was also a longtime member of First Congregational Church in Crystal Lake and a 50-year member of P.E.O. Chapter LD, according to her obituary.

A memorial service for Kerns will be held at the First Congregational Church, , 461 Pierson St. in Crystal Lake on Thursday, January 26, at 2 p.m.