Background
Albertina Sechtem was born in Portland to Louis and Christina Sechtem.
Albertina Sechtem was born in Portland to Louis and Christina Sechtem.
Known to her family as "Tina", Albertina attended Couch Elementary School and Lincoln High School.
Louis, who owned The Quelle Restaurant on Southwest Second Avenue and Stark Street, was from Germany, and Christina was from Sweden. She dropped out of high school and went to work at the Kerr Glass Company at Northwest Fourth Avenue and Hoyt Street, where she met owner Alexander Kerr. Shortly after John was born, the Kerrs traveled to Camp Rilea on the Oregon Coast and Long Beach, Washington, and Albertina contracted typhoid fever while on the trip, probably from one of the beach areas.
She died on October 17, 1911.
Alexander donated their home to the Pacific Coast Rescue Society for use as a home for orphans. The nursery operated until 1967, when the organization changed to a foster care approach.
The original building on Sandy Boulevard was reopened in 1981 as Albertina"s Restaurant and Shops. One of the restaurant"s signature dishes is a cheesecake served in a 4-ounce Kerr canning jar.
Today the Albertina Kerr Centers help people with developmental disabilities–a role the organization took on in the 1980s after the State of Oregon began to make plans to close the Fairview Training Center–and people with behavioral health needs.
Albertina Kerr is buried in River View Cemetery.