Kyle Kennedy, granddaughter of Robert and Ethel Kennedy, dies at 42

What happened

Kyle Kennedy, a granddaughter of the late Senator Robert F. Kennedy and Ethel Kennedy, died on Sept. 21 at her home in Westwood, Massachusetts. She was 42. The death became widely known on Oct. 20, when an online obituary was picked up by several news outlets. ^{[1] [2] [3]}

Parade reported that the obituary says she died "peacefully." The obituary does not give a cause of death, and TMZ said neither the cause nor the manner of death had been revealed. ^{[3] [1]}

The National News Desk reported that the death certificate, as described by People, lists the cause as pending and says the manner of death is under investigation. Parade, citing the same People report, said the Westwood town clerk described the cause as pending. No official has commented on how she died, and nothing reported so far links her death to any accident. ^{[2] [3]}

Injury and advocacy

In 2020, Kennedy suffered a severe spinal cord injury that left her with long-term paralysis and other medical problems, according to the obituary as summarized by The National News Desk and Parade. None of the reports reviewed say how the injury happened. ^{[2] [3]}

After the injury she became an advocate for people with disabilities. The National News Desk reported that she testified at a Massachusetts State House hearing on health care discrimination against disabled patients. The same report said she was a runner who finished the 2019 Boston Marathon in heavy rain, beating her father's time by 20 minutes. ^[2]

Family and career

Kennedy was the daughter of Michael Kennedy, the sixth of Robert and Ethel Kennedy's 11 children, and Victoria Denise Gifford, a daughter of the late NFL star Frank Gifford. Her father died on New Year's Eve 1997 in a skiing accident while playing football on skis with relatives, according to TMZ and Parade. She was 13 at the time. ^{[1] [3]}

She earned a history degree from Georgetown University, then taught early childhood education in New York City through Teach For America. She went on to earn a master's in early education from Pace University and a master's in education policy and management from Harvard's Graduate School of Education. Later she worked on education reform, including school curriculum projects with technology companies and coaching for teachers of young children. ^{[2] [1]}

What comes next

Her survivors include her mother, her brother Michael, her sister Rory and her two sons, according to The National News Desk and Parade. Funeral services were held privately, The National News Desk reported. She was one of 34 grandchildren of Robert and Ethel Kennedy. Any update on the cause of death would come from Massachusetts death records or from the family, and neither had released more as of Oct. 20. ^{[2] [3]}