Peter and Anna Kerst were the parents of Mother Scholastica Kerst and Sister Alexia Kerst. They came to America in 1852 from Prussia and settled in St. Paul, where they purchased 540 acres of land whose ever-increasing value became a source of wealth. The Kersts were very generous to the young Benedictine community in Duluth, helping buy land and buildings which led to the founding of St. Mary's Hospital and The College of St. Scholastica. Peter died in 1900 and Anna moved to the Villa to spend her last years with her daughters. She died in 1911 just a few months before Mother Scholastica, and is buried in Gethsemane Cemetery next to her daughters.