NBC New York Reporter Adam Kuperstein Loses Father to COVID-19

While WNBC reporter Adam Kuperstein has been working tirelessly in New York City covering the coronavirus crisis, the pandemic hit close to home.

He wrote on Instagram that his father died in the hospital “with a stranger holding his hand” after getting sick.

The Emmy Award-winning reporter and weekend anchor for WNBC paid tribute to his father, who “made sacrifices for his family and taught his boys how to become gentlemen, never asking for anything in return. Just love.”

My dad died with a stranger holding his hand.

With his wife of 43 years forced to stay inside their home, all alone.

With his sons, stuck in the epicenter of this crisis, where never-ending sirens echo throughout a deserted city.

All we could do was listen on the phone (from our separate quarantines), choking back tears, as the nurse informed us, “his heart stopped.” That’s when our hearts broke.

Kuperstein joined WNBC from South Florida NBC station WTVJ in 2017.

In his Instagram post, Kuperstein shared the last picture he took with his parents, writing that his dad “came to this country with nothing, the son of Holocaust survivors, and achieved so much.”

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My dad died with a stranger holding his hand. With his wife of 43 years forced to stay inside their home, all alone. With his sons, stuck in the epicenter of this crisis, where never-ending sirens echo throughout a deserted city. All we could do was listen on the phone (from our separate quarantines), choking back tears, as the nurse informed us, “his heart stopped.” That’s when our hearts broke. We were shattered. A week of picturing the strong man we called “Aba,” connected to a ventilator in an Indianapolis ICU, was bad enough, but now we were forced to imagine life without him. I couldn’t. I can’t. And I can’t even hug my mom! She tested positive for COVID-19 too. Only minor symptoms thankfully, but at a time where she needed someone to comfort her, she was alone. It’s the cruelest part of this nightmare. She deserves better. He deserved better. My dad came to this country with nothing, the son of Holocaust survivors, and achieved so much. He made sacrifices for his family and taught his boys how to become gentlemen, never asking for anything in return. Just love. So please pay tribute to my dad by protecting your loved ones and yourself as the coronavrius crisis grows. Don’t overlook symptoms just because you don’t have a cough or shortness of breath. My father’s symptoms were digestive at first. My mom mainly lost her sense of taste and smell. And please send as much love as possible to the heroic health care workers trying to save us. My family never got to meet the nurses and doctors who cared for my Aba. But I know they did everything they could, even though it meant putting their own lives at risk. This is the last picture we took together. It wasn’t supposed to be. He had so much more love to give. We miss you Aba! #stayhome #coronavairus #covid19

A post shared by Adam Kuperstein (@akuperstein) on Apr 6, 2020 at 5:43am PDT