Florida Family, ‘Full Of Life,’ Were Onboard Doomed Plane In Costa Rica
The Weiss family, of Pinellas County, Florida. Image by Facebook
By Ari Feldman January 2, 2018
Two Jewish families were onboard a doomed single-engine plane in Costa Rica that crashed shortly after takeoff. The two families were killed, along with their guide and the plane’s two pilots. There were no survivors.
The Weiss family, of St. Petersburg, Florida, was Mitchell and Leslie Weiss, both doctors, and their children, Hannah, 19, and Ari, 16. Hannah was in her sophomore year at the Jewish Theological Seminary’s List College. Ari was a sophomore in high school.
The assistant headmaster of Shorecrest Preparatory, where Hannah and Ari attended high school, said Ari was a straight-A student and Hannah was deeply committed to social justice.
“These were two kids that were full of life, they always had a smile on their face, they were positive, pursued everything in life with incredible passion and commitment,” Tom Dillow told Bay News 9.
“I think all of us are still in shock, and we’re still trying to come to terms with not just a member of our community but of an entire family in our community, and I think that’s something most people never deal with in their lives,” Dillow said.
A neighbor of the Weiss family also mourned the loss.
“They were always happy, smiling, always wanting to know about my son. It’s heartbreaking hearing the news,” Spencer Hornsby said. “We’re praying that everyone that’s related to them and the rest of their family can get through this.”
Contact Ari Feldman at [email protected] or on Twitter @aefeldman
A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse..
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
