Kyle Kennedy, a granddaughter of Robert F. Kennedy and Ethel Kennedy, has died at 42.
She died peacefully on September 21 at her home in Westwood, Massachusetts, according to an obituary published by Burke Funeral Homes. People first reported her death on October 20.
No cause of death has been made public. The Westwood town clerk told People the death certificate lists the cause as pending.
Kennedy was the daughter of Michael Kennedy, one of Robert and Ethel Kennedy’s 11 children, and Victoria Gifford, the daughter of football player and broadcaster Frank Gifford. She was one of 34 Kennedy grandchildren. Her father died in a 1997 skiing accident, when Kyle was 13.
She built her career in education. She earned a history degree from Georgetown, a master’s in early childhood education from Pace University and a master’s in education policy and management from Harvard, according to the obituary. She started out with Teach For America in New York City public schools and went on to work on educational opportunities for disadvantaged children.
In 2020 she suffered a severe spinal cord injury that left her with long-term paralysis. After the injury she became an advocate for people with disabilities and testified at the Massachusetts State House about discrimination in health care for disabled people.
Her obituary also recalls her love of running: she ran the Boston Marathon in 2019 through a driving rainstorm and finished twenty minutes ahead of her own father’s time.
She is survived by her sons Conor, 12, and Declan, 10; her mother, Victoria; her brother, Michael; and her sister, Rory.
Source: New York Post
