Kevin Patrick Joseph Neville, aged 55, passed away Wednesday due to complications of cancer. Born in St. Vincent’s Hospital, NYC, he grew up in Crestwood, NY and raised his own family in Hillsdale and Montvale NJ. A Happy Warrior in the tradition of Wordsworth’s poem, he was a faithful and adoring husband to Elizabeth Ferrante Neville, and devoted in unconditional love to son Conor and daughter Reilly. Beloved son of Patrick and Catherine Neville, brother to Kathryn, doting uncle to Matthew Capuano, Sean and Patrick Browne, he is survived by extended family and countless friends.
Kevin graduated from Fordham Prep and Manhattan College and earned his Master’s degree from Iona, trading on his keen intellect to shape a thriving career in business, holding positions with Bear Stearns, Pfizer and CitiGroup. While that was the manner in which he earned a living, his intense creativity, boundless energy, profound empathy, and vibrant wit were the traits by which he made a life.
Never jaded, he literally ate life, learning and perfecting cooking skills, and turning his aptitudes into any number of hobbies and pursuits- including karate, ice hockey and luge sledding; acting, directing, and designing sets for amateur theater; animation art, movies, music, and photography; and anything at all that concerned his children. He could not abide to see a problem without advancing a practical and inspired solution. His wit was his hallmark and he could break up a business meeting, or a table full of friends, in laughter with equal ease.
His most abiding trait was his love and affection for his wife of thirty years, Liz, and children Conor and Reilly. Most any conversation included some busted buttons over them, not out of pride but in genuine awe of the blessings of being husband and father. He was a man of principle and rock steady faith in God, which never left him even through the nightmare of an illness borne with great dignity and strength. For all these things, we will never forget him.
Eternal Rest grant unto him, O Lord. Godspeed brother Kevin.
The family will receive friends on Sunday from 3:30 PM until 7 PM at the Hannemann Funeral Home, Inc., 88 So. Broadway Nyack, NY 10960. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Monday at 10 AM at Our Lady of Mercy RC Church, 2 Fremont Ave., Park Ridge, NJ 07656. Burial will follow at Ascension Cemetery , Airmont, NY.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that friends consider donations to these charities:
American Brain Tumor Association at www.abta.org
Compassionate Care Foundation, 248 East Chestnut Hill Road, Suite #4, Newark, Delaware, 19713.