NY Activist Who Lost Daughter in Storm Dies
Jon Kest's death came just weeks after daughter Jessie Streich-Kest's death during Sandy
Friday, Dec 7, 2012 | Updated 8:58 AM EDT
Courtesy NY Communities for Change
Jon Kest
Jon Kest, a longtime New York community activist whose daughter died after she was hit by a tree during Superstorm Sandy, has died. He was 57.
Kest died late Wednesday in New York of cancer. The death came just weeks after daughter Jessie Streich-Kest's death. Kest was executive director of the Brooklyn-based New York Communities for Change.
Working Families Party Executive Director Dan Cantor called the death "sadness upon sadness." He also said Kest had a "backbone of steel and a quick and supple mind."
Kest is survived by his wife, their son and his brother. Funeral services were scheduled for Sunday at 10:30 a.m. at the United Federation of Teachers in Manhattan. A private cemetery gathering was to follow.
Photos: Metro North Train Collision
