Edward Kassar, active Ridgeite and veteran, passes away

Family and friends are remembering Edward Kassar, 101, alongtime member of the Bay Ridge AARP, who died on July 31, for hiscompassion and his enthusiasm.

He was a caring and devoted father and husband who loved peopleand enjoyed life, said Douglas Kassar, Edward’s son. He was avery caring and compassionate person. He was very connected to hisfamily.

The elder Kassar dedicated himself to the AARP Chapter No. 3630,according to Peter Killen, the president of the group.

Our last meeting was in June, and he was there, and he said hewanted to retire, and we said, ‘no, you can’t,’ Killen said. Hesaid ‘OK – I’ll keep coming back until I can’t come back anymore.’We were looking forward to seeing him in September. He was our50/50 raffle person…. He made it sound so good to take a chanceat winning that raffle. He was a strong believer in AARP and whatit meant to seniors like himself.

Kassar was a World War II veteran who served in England, France andGermany. He was also a contractor for women’s clothing, a member ofthe Knights of Columbus and a parishioner of St. Anselm’s Church inBay Ridge, where he served as an usher at Mass.

To celebrate his 100th birthday in 2009, his family threw a partyfor him in Park Slope. Along with many of his fellow AARP members,Councilmember Vincent Gentile and State Senator Marty Goldenattended and presented him with a proclamation for hiscontributions to the community. He would have turned 102 inSeptember.

Kassar’s wife, Nettie, died in 1993, and he is survived by histhree sons, John, Douglas and Peter, and his two granddaughters,Emily and Madison.

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