Heartbroken friends and loved ones filled a Long Island church Monday to mourn the father of three killed in a Poughkeepsie hotel lobby earlier this month while visiting for his son's college family weekend.
Paul Kutz, of East Northport, had been in Poughkeepsie, where one of his three sons attends Marist College, and was in the lobby at the Courtyard by Marriott when gunshots rang out in the lobby on the first Sunday in October.
Two men, including a fugitive eyed in an unrelated August homicide and wanted on gun charges out of Georgia, have been arrested in the case. That investigation has landed a number of law enforcement agencies under public scrutiny, though officials have said Kutz was an innocent bystander caught in the fray when the alleged shooter went to get coffee that morning, got into an argument with hotel staff and others and opened fire.
Kutz, a "cherished husband" and "devoted father," was remembered at a public Mass Monday at St. Anthony of Padua Church in East Northport. Friends and loved ones remembered Kutz for his involvement with Little League baseball, his devotion to his dogs and most of all, his love for his family.
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Kutz is survived by his wife, three sons, three brothers and his father. All other services will be private. Kutz was 53 years old.
Kutz is survived by his father and three brothers in addition to his sons, Matt, Ryan and Sean, and wife, Nathalie.
"Paul's beautiful presence will be deeply missed by all whose lives he touched, from his loving family, devoted clients and numerous friends and acquaintances," his obituary read. "To know Paul meant to love him, which is why we all hurt so badly as his young life ended so abruptly."
A certified public account and financial planner, Kutz earned a bachelor's degree in accounting and his MBA in taxation. He was a principal in Kutz & Company CPAs, an accounting and financial advisory firm in Great Neck that he founded with his brother Andrew, his obituary says. He coached Little League baseball teams for years and was an avid dog lover, especially when it came to his Bernese Mountain dog named Luna Bay, it reads.
In lieu of flowers, Kutz's family requested donations be made to Little Shelter Animal Rescue & Adoption Center in Huntington, given his passion.
