Community mourning, rallying around family of US Marine Corps employee killed during severe storms

MONTCLAIR, Va. — As crews continue to clean up storm damage throughout northern Virginia, a Montclair community is mourning the loss of a beloved neighbor killed over the weekend.

Kenneth Allan Lee, 44, died on Saturday when a tree fell on top of his home on Holly Hill Drive in Montclair during the severe storms. He was in the bathroom at the time.

He was a web developer for the U.S. Marine Corps and father of two girls, according to a neighbor who also created a GoFundMe page that benefits his family.

Perry Baltimore, who lives next door, said he had just seen Lee return from a bike ride when the tree fell about 20 minutes later.

“It’s just so sad,” Baltimore told WUSA9. “He was a good man – a hard worker who was dedicated to his family. He was a wonderful father, loving man and he loved to cook.”

The donation page said Lee “loved spending time with his family, staying fit by riding his bike and cooking healthy meals. He especially loved planning trips and traveling with the girls.”

His wife and two girls are now staying at a hotel while they make funeral arrangements.

New home surveillance video from another resident in the neighborhood captured the gusty conditions when another tree next door toppled over and crashed into another neighbor’s home. A separate GoFundMe page said the family was also displaced.

A neighbor posted signs with QR codes that lead people to the donation pages outside both homes.

“The community cares,” added Baltimore. “They about the families suffering now and in some small way we can help, we want to do that.”

The support could also be felt by arborist Bill Kelley of Tree Times, responsible for removing the tree after a large piece of the tree crashed into the home by another tree removal crew.

“We actually put off three other projects to come up,” said Kelley. “We had other clients that knew and heard of this, and we requested to be here first, and they said yes.”

There is no word at this time on when power may be restored.