NEW YORK CITY — The family of the jogger who died after collapsing in Prospect Park has suffered a second and eerily similar blow.
Peter C. Berry, the half-brother of Rynn Berry, died Jan. 19 after suffering a heart attack while jogging in Central Park, his former wife said.
"It's obviously devastating," Tav Berry said.
Berry, 60, died just a week and three days after his half-brother Rynn, who collapsed while jogging in Brooklyn's Prospect Park on New Year's Eve. Rynn Berry, 68, wasn't carrying identification with him when he collapsed, and he was hospitalized for more than a week as a John Doe.
On Jan. 7 another half-brother, Charles Berry, identified him, and Rynn Berry died on Jan. 9 at Park Slope's New York Methodist Hospital. The medical examiner's office is still trying to determine the exact cause of death.
The family was planning Rynn Berry's memorial when Peter Berry died, said Charles Berry. "It's been a terrible sadness for us," he said and added that the entire family spent Christmas Eve together.
Like his half-brother Rynn, a noted historian of vegetarianism, Peter Berry was known for his voracious intellectual appetite. He was passionate about books and libraries, and read ancient Greek and Latin, his former wife said.
He was also very athletic, and ran in "many" New York City marathons, she said. He practiced yoga and martial arts and was a regular jogger in Central Park, Tav Berry said. Peter Berry is survived by three children.
Charles Berry said there was some small comfort from the fact that both Rynn and Peter died in New York City parks that they adored.
"They both loved those respective parks, so I suppose that's a positive aspect of it," Charles Berry said. "But we've been terribly saddened, and appreciate all the warm feelings that people have expressed."
A memorial service for Peter Berry will be held at St. James Church, 865 Madison Ave., on Jan. 27 at 4 p.m. Plans are still under way for a service for Rynn Berry.
