RFK's Granddaughter Kyle Kennedy Dies Aged 42, Four Years After Life-Changing Spinal Cord Injury
Kyle Kennedy, a granddaughter of Robert F Kennedy and Ethel Kennedy who became an advocate for people with disabilities after a severe spinal cord injury, has died at her home in Westwood, Massachusetts, aged 42.
She died on 21 September, according to an obituary published by Burke Family Funeral Homes. The Westwood town clerk confirmed the death to US media and said her cause of death has not yet been disclosed.
Her family said Kennedy suffered a severe spinal cord injury in 2020 that resulted in long-term paralysis, disability and other medical challenges. In the years that followed, she became an advocate for people living with disabilities, including testifying at the Massachusetts State House about discrimination in healthcare.
Known publicly as Kyle Francis Kennedy, she worked as an educator and later became a disability rights campaigner.
Education and Advocacy in the Kennedy Family Shadow
Born on 6 July 1984 in Washington DC to Michael Kennedy and Victoria Denise Gifford, she grew up in Cohasset, Massachusetts.
She studied history at Georgetown University, then gained a Master of Science degree in early education from Pace University. She also held a Master of Education in education policy and management from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
She joined Teach For America after university and taught in New York City public schools. She later moved into education advocacy, working with technology companies on school curricula.
After her injury, she became a campaigner for people with disabilities, according to her obituary and state records. She testified at the Massachusetts State House at a hearing on discrimination in healthcare for disabled people.
Her uncle, Robert F Kennedy Jr, is the US Health and Human Services Secretary. Her grandfather, Robert F Kennedy, was shot in Los Angeles in June 1968 after winning the California Democratic presidential primary. He died the following day. His brother, President John F Kennedy, had been shot dead in Dallas five years earlier.
Family Life, Loss and the 2019 Boston Marathon
In August 2012, she married Liam Kerr in Boston. The obituary describes him as her former husband. The couple had twins, Conor and Josie, but their daughter died days after birth. A second son, Declan, was born two years later.
She was also a long-distance runner. The obituary says she completed the 2019 Boston Marathon in heavy rain, finishing 20 minutes faster than her father had done years earlier.
Her family said her final years 'brought struggles', but that she kept her 'dry wit and determination' and tried to be the best possible mother to her sons. Her father, Michael, was killed in a skiing accident in Colorado on New Year's Eve 1997, aged 39.
She is survived by her sons Conor, 12, and Declan, 10, her mother, Victoria, her brother, Michael, her sister, Rory, and nieces and nephews McKie, Quinn, Jack and Caleb. A private funeral service has been held.