Slay vic recalled as good guy, chef
Kin seek answers in wake of deadly spat
An argument and a stab wound that took the life of a beloved Brooklyn man had friends and family speculating about his slaying Thursday — and remembering his good cooking.
Kern Baird, 37, was stabbed in his chest at about 6:40 p.m. Saturday on Crown St. near Utica Ave. in Crown Heights. Medics rushed him to Kings County Hospital, where he died.
“He got into an argument with this person,” the victim’s twin sister, Avianne Baird said. “He was stabbed once.”
Avianne Baird said her brother was drinking and hanging out on the block with his friends.
Beyond that, Baird’s friends and family could only speculate.
He was a native of Tobago who moved to the states in 1995, and worked for the last three years at Bed Stuy Fish Fry.
“One of the chefs there trained him,” she said, referring to chef Andre Chin. “Once ’ Dre taught him how to cook, it was over from there. He used to come over and tell me my food wasn’t good.”
Chin said Baird mastered the menu — pasta, candied yams, collared greens, fried fish. And his sister said he loved to make macaroni pie and grilled salmon.
“He fell in love with cooking. He would take passion in what he does, he would take his time. He graduated from being a student to being someone who could teach others.”
“Kern was a lovable guy,” Chin said. “I can remember instances where he would get his check and step outside and get everyone a drink. He couldn’t help himself.”
Kern Baird, who graduated from Automotive High School, left behind four children.
He was a generous man, said his sister.
“He saw old people in the street, he helped them. ’You hungry? Come, I’ll get you something to eat,’ he would say.”
When he bought new clothes, he got rid of the old ones — “he would give them away to his friends.”
“We are going to miss him,” said Chin. “He was a good friend. This is a sad occasion. We talk about him every day. We are praying for justice, and we hope we will find a peace of mind.”
A funeral for Baird is planned for Monday.
“I feel like I will turn and I will see Kern at work, dancing and playing music and joking, acting a fool,” Chin said. “We used to joke around, and when the customers come in we bring them into the joke too.”
Kevis Parkinson, 38, said he has been friends with Baird since they met in 1995. “He was just my good boy. We drink together, party together, we did everything together,” he said.
Parkinson said he was there on the block when the fatal fight happened, but was behind a car with some other friends. He ran over to help but it was too late.
“We see him fall on the ground, and that’s how we know he got stabbed,” he said. “He stayed conscious all the way to the ambulance. I’m still not believing it. Until I go to the funeral and I see him I’ll believe it.”
A vigil is planned for Saturday on the block where Baird died.