RFK's Granddaughter Kyle Kennedy Dies at 42 After Years Living With Paralysis

RFK's Granddaughter Kyle Kennedy Dies at 42 After Years Living With Paralysis

Obituary confirms a quiet death at home on September 21

Kyle Francis Kennedy died on September 21 at her home in Westwood, Massachusetts. She was 42. The news comes from an obituary published by Burke Funeral Homes and was first reported by PEOPLE on October 20, with outlets including USA Today, The Guardian and the Boston Globe following. The obituary said she died peacefully, and that private funeral services have already been held.

Cause of death pending, manner under investigation

No cause of death was given in the obituary. PEOPLE obtained her death certificate, which lists the cause as pending, with the manner of death under investigation. The Westwood town clerk confirmed the pending status to The Guardian. That is the full extent of the official account so far.

A severe spinal injury in 2020 changed her life

According to the obituary, Kennedy sustained a severe spinal cord injury in 2020 that left her with long-term paralysis, disability and further medical challenges. She lived with the consequences for about six years. The obituary said the years that followed brought struggles, but that she fought to keep her dry wit and determination, striving to be the best possible mother to her sons.

An educator who became a voice for disability rights

Kennedy was born on July 6, 1984, in Washington, D.C., one of the 34 grandchildren of Robert F. Kennedy and Ethel Kennedy, and the daughter of Michael Kennedy and Victoria Denise Gifford. Raised largely in Cohasset, Massachusetts, she attended Milton Academy, majored in history at Georgetown University with a semester in Florence, then earned a Master of Science in Early Education from Pace University and a Master of Education in Education Policy and Management from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She joined Teach for America and taught for two years in New York City public schools, later working in early childhood education, charter-school advocacy, curriculum work and coaching teachers. After her injury she became an advocate for people living with disabilities, including testifying at a Massachusetts State House hearing on discrimination in health care for disabled people.

Two young sons survive her; a family marked by loss

She is survived by her sons Conor, 12, and Declan, 10, her ex-husband Liam, her mother Victoria, her brother Michael and her sister Rory. Her daughter Josie, the fraternal twin of Conor, died days after birth. Her father Michael died in a 1997 skiing accident in Aspen. The obituary also remembered her two Wheaten terriers as beloved and ill-behaved. Her death is another bereavement for a family that has endured more than its share of public tragedy.