CLIFF  KAMINSKY    1969 - 2004

(By Cliff's mother, Marion Balsam.)
 

With great sadness, I share with you that my son, Cliff Kaminsky, tragically died in a mountain climbing accident, on May 29, 2004, in the Sierra Mountains, near Lake Tahoe, California. Cliff graduated from Walt Whitman High School (Bethesda, Maryland) in 1987. He then attended Boston University, from which he graduated Cum Laude in 1992 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering, following which he obtained a Master’s Degree, also in Mechanical Engineering, from the University of Michigan in 1994. At the time of his death, he was living in Manhattan Beach, California, and worked as a vibration and acoustics engineer for Engineering Systems International (‘ESI’), consulting to automotive and aerospace companies worldwide. He loved his work and his customers and colleagues loved him.

While at Walt Whitman High School, Cliff was a leader of the Vikatrons, supporting the audio-visual technology for school productions. Another key interest at Walt Whitman was the advanced art program. While at the University of Michigan, Cliff was in a band, ‘Ape7’, which recorded two CDs and performed locally. Cliff continued his love for music, writing lyrics, singing beautifully, and playing several instruments, most notably guitar, bass guitar and piano/keyboard. Enormously talented, Cliff was optimistic about a future in music. Additionally, he volunteered and taught guitar to troubled and orphaned teenagers, selflessly sharing his love for music with those less fortunate.

Cliff’s other passion was animal rights. About four years before his death, Cliff became acquainted with people committed to the welfare of animals, and he decided to become vegan and to volunteer for a broad range of animal rights organizations. His articulate yet gentle manner enabled him to be an effective spokesperson for the animal rights community, expressing his views strongly and sensitively but not offensively. He devoted enormous time and effort to this commitment and was considered an inspiration to many.

While Cliff loved his work, he was not defined by it. He is recalled to have said, ‘I think I’m the happiest guy I know’, and ‘I think I’m the luckiest guy I know’. If Cliff hadn’t yet done something, then it was certainly on his ‘to do’ list. Thriving on new experiences, Cliff had learned rock climbing and, at the time of his accident, was training to climb Mount Whitney. A year before, he learned the samba so as to be able to dance in Carnaval in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He loved to ponder the great questions of life. He believed that every small effort at making the world a better place for all creatures was worthwhile, as a step in the right direction. A dear and devoted friend to many, Cliff was a soft-spoken, gentle, generous, charming and handsome young man with a profound intellect and sense of wonder about the world.

Cliff’s burial site is at Judean Memorial Gardens in Olney, Maryland (near Washington, D.C.)  

Friends of Cliff, please feel free to contact us if you so desire.  Friends@cliffkaminsky.org