Heartbroken York mom mourns son Brian Kenealy killed in crash: He was 'always smiling'

YORK, Maine — Brian Kenealy’s mother said he walked proudly on campus at the Maine Maritime Academy knowing he was the son of a sailor.

“He saw himself as going to sea as his father,” Beth Jimmo said Tuesday.

Her 20-year-old son, a 2021 York High School graduate, was in his second year at the academy in Castine, Maine, where he and three of his classmates were killed in a single-car accident Saturday. He was one of six passengers in an SUV that crashed into a tree in the early morning, causing the vehicle to burst into flames.

Now, Kenealy’s mother and siblings are mourning together while waiting for his father Dan, a merchant marine ship captain, to return Friday from his vessel in the Red Sea. Jimmo said she has been on the phone with him every day to grieve their son’s loss together from halfway around the world.

“Heartbroken,” she said. “It’s so unbelievable, but just so terribly real all at the same time.”

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Brian Kenealy remembered for his contagious smile

Sitting at her dining room table, Jimmo remembered her son as an adventurous kid with a contagious smile and great sense of humor.

Kenealy's bright smile could be warm but also mischievously “impish” at times, she said.

He was known to pull a friendly prank on someone, but also one to laugh at himself, she said. Jimmo looked at a picture of her son and his friend when they were young kids, scrawny, pretending to blow out their stomachs to look bigger. Kenealy’s face is seen in one picture bursting with laughter.

“That was his MO. He would try something, and be so amused,” Jimmo said. “He laughed a lot.”

Jimmo said Kenealy had a tight-knit group of friends and throughout his childhood enjoyed all kinds of outdoor activities. Some days they would find a cliff or bridge to jump from into local waters. Other days, they would take a raft and float down the York River.

The group of friends grew to a “pack” of more than a dozen boys who spent much of their time together looking for adventure, Jimmo said. “That’s maybe common for three or four boys,” she said. “There was a group of 17 to 21 boys you didn’t see one without another.”

Kenealy also loved sports and played varsity soccer, baseball and track during high school. He was considered a leader on and off the field, according to his coach.

Kenealy was close with his siblings, Laura, Molly and Peter, as well as both parents. Jimmo said he was never afraid to hug her after a soccer match or tell her that he loved her at the end of a phone call.

“He did have a lot of things he had to be cool for his friends, but that was not one of them,” Jimmo said. “He was affectionate and loving.”

Like father, like son

With his dad, Jimmo said, the two would work on projects together like putting together a computer from scratch. They saw each other when his father was home, working 75 days at a time as a ship captain and then 75 days off. Once he's home, Jimmo said, he gives his full attention to his family.

Maritime activities as a family were not common growing up, Jimmo said, so her husband did not feel like he was on a “busman’s holiday” while on vacation. Still, Kenealy developed an interest in his father’s work.

Having time off for months at a time was appealing, she said, and Kenealy loved travel and adventure.

Jimmo said her son considered an engineering degree at the University of Maine, but ultimately changed his mind and entered the maritime academy. She said her son enjoyed the academy with coursework that included maritime studies in navigation, ocean safety, firefighting and hands-on boating experience. He also went on a training cruise for eight weeks this summer, Jimmo said, traveling the coast of the United States, across the Atlantic Ocean to the Azores and then to Iceland.

“He wanted more opportunities to travel and jump off cliffs and scuba dive in his travels, but also he liked being at sea,” Jimmo said. “That was very attractive.”

‘Shattering’ news

Police said the crash took place early Saturday morning and is still under investigation. Kenealy was one of four passengers killed when the car, a 2013 Range Rover driven by Joshua Goncalves-Radding, 20, of North Babylon, New York, crashed into a tree and burst into flames early Saturday. Also killed were Chase Fossett, 21, of Gardiner, Maine; Luke Simpson, 22, of Rockport, Massachusetts; and Riley Ignacio-Cameron, 20, of Aquinnah, Massachusetts. Three others, including Goncalves-Radding, survived and were taken to local hospitals.

Kenealy’s family was out of town Saturday when police visited their home twice to try to inform them of the crash in Castine. Jimmo said police finally reached her by phone.

“It was shattering,” Jimmo said.

Since the crash, the family has seldom been alone, thanks to a revolving door of close friends and community members checking in on them. Friends have offered food, flowers, rides and stories about Kenealy’s smile and laughter.

“I feel the arms of this community around us,” Jimmo said. “I feel very loved and supported.”

Jimmo looked through other photos on her phone of her son while sitting at her table. They included pictures from his training cruise and trips to Iceland, as well as his graduation day at York High School. There was another with Kenealy and his close friend Cavin standing with their arms around each other, Kenealy’s face beaming.

“Always smiling,” Jimmo said. “Always had such a great smile.”

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: York mom mourns Brian Kenealy, killed in crash in Castine, Maine