Corey Kessler

1977 - 2015

Corey Louis Kessler, 38
SCOTTS VALLERY, Calif. - Corey Louis Kessler, 38, died unexpectedly on August 9 at his home in Scotts Valley, CA. Corey was born in Seattle, Wash., on June 1, 1977. He grew up in Cape Elizabeth and graduated from Cape Elizabeth High School in 1995. He attended Denison University in Granville, Ohio, for two years before transferring to Colby College in Waterville, majoring in economics and graduating with a B.A. in 1999. After working for several years as a paralegal in Maine, Oregon and Rhode Island, he continued his professional education at Seattle University School of Law (2004-2007, J.D. cum laude) and Boston University School of Law (LL.M., Taxation, Tax Law, 2007-2008). After graduation, he joined the accounting firm of KPMG as a Manager - Mergers & Acquisitions – Tax, initially in Boston, Mass., and later in Santa Clara, Calif., until his death.
Corey's chief joy in life was his family. He met the love of his life, Krista Hielscher, in Seattle while in law school, and they were married on May 28, 2006. Corey and Krista were blessed with two children, Juniper, 4, and Silas, 2.
Corey was a superb fly fisherman, having inherited the casting elegance of one grandfather and the fish-catching savvy of the other. He enjoyed a wide variety of outdoor activities, including shotgun sports (sporting clays and trap) and recreational and competitive mountain biking. Corey also served as a volunteer financial steward at Faith Community Church in Santa Cruz.
Corey is survived by his wife, Krista, and their two children, Juniper and Silas; his parents, Skip and Dianne Kessler, of Bend, Ore.; his sister and brother-in-law, Briarly and Bjorn Kilburn, and their three daughters, Mia, Molly and Samantha,of Menlo Park, Calif.; his in-laws, Al and Judy Hielscher, of Bothell, Wash. and his sister-in-law Allison Morgan (husband Beau Morgan) and their three children, Chloe, Roscoe and Mac, of Ventura, Calif. He also leaves two uncles, two aunts; and six cousins.
Corey's spiritual family of Faith Community Church, Santa Cruz, will hold a memorial service and reception in celebration of his life from 2-3:30 p.m. on Saturday, August 22, at the Santa Cruz First Church of the Nazarene, 115 South Morrissey Avenue, Santa Cruz, CA 95062. A memorial site for Corey has been created on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/coreykesslerpage/ . The page may be viewed by everyone; visitors may post by logging in to Facebook.