Grieving family of veteran city worker blames city and pension fund for months long COVID-19 ordeal

Coronavirus left her without a father, Alliyah Speight says the pandemic isn’t the only reason she’s now parentless and going on penniless.

Her father Donald Speight worked for decades at New York City’s Human Resources Administration, at a job he loved and where he had made many friends over the years.

In March, when COVID-19 began to sweep through the city, Donald asked his supervisors for permission to work from home because his lungs were riddled with cancer and made him more susceptible to the virus.

HRA declined his request at first, Alliyah, 19, and her aunt Michell Speight told the Daily News. But her father kept pressing.

“It was pretty frustrating for him to argue back and forth just to make sure he was healthy and safe,” Alliyah said. “He had cancer, and he knew he was prone to get COVID.”

Donald, who lived in Bushwick with his two daughters, was eventually granted his request, but it didn’t come soon enough.

“He started feeling ill not too long after that,” Alliyah explained.

On March 30, when he was taken to Wyckoff Heights Medical Center, Donald Speight’s temperature had been climbing for days, he was lethargic and he couldn’t remember what year it was.

Eleven days later, he was dead at the age of 63, right before Alliyah’s 19th birthday.

Alliyah, who lost her mother eight years ago when she was only 11, believes the city bears some of the blame for her loss.

“It’s not all their fault. They didn’t start COVID, but it’s partially their fault,” she told The News. “They made him come to work even though he had a weakened immune system.”

Donald was granted his request to work from home on March 20, just a day after HRA issued its working-from-home policy, according to city officials. He began working from home on March 23.

“We extend our deepest condolences to the Speight family for the loss of Donald Speight. As a member of the HRA community, Mr. Speight’s passing weighs heavy on this agency, where he worked to improve countless lives,” said HRA spokesman Isaac McGinn. “We are committed to doing all that we can to support Mr. Speight’s family in these difficult times.”

Donald Speight served in the Navy prior to working for the city. It didn’t take long for him to fall in love with his job. According to his sister, he spent his entire HRA career trying to cut red tape for poor people in need of food stamps.

“He was really empathetic. He loved helping people,” she said. “It’s just so ironic that my brother worked so hard for other people. The one time my brother needed something from the city, he was unable to get it. My brother was such a loyal employee. It’s just so heartbreaking to me.”

Now, six months after Donald’s demise, his family is facing yet another Byzantine challenge -- securing his pension benefits from the New York City Employees' Retirement System so his daughters can keep paying their rent.

Alliyah, who now lives in a dorm and attends classes at St. Francis College in downtown Brooklyn, described that as one more depressing distraction in what feels like a prolonged nightmare.

“If we get this, it would help out a lot, especially with college,” she said. “If I finish college, I’ll be able to get a better job and help out my family more.”

To pay her bills in the meantime, she’s applied for a job at McDonald’s.

For months, she and her sister Alecia, 27, have been relying in part on savings their father left them, according to their aunt.

“That’s almost gone,” MIchell Speight said. “We’re hoping the money comes in before the end of the semester.”

But that’s far from certain. Michell has tried to contact NYCERS since April, only to get through to someone earlier this month.

Alliyah received forms from the fund last week, but nothing on when she and her sister might expect their father’s pension money to come through.

“Before NYCERS can generate payment of death benefits, a full review of entitlements must be performed by law,” a spokeswoman for the pension fund said. “The length of time for processing benefits varies based on case specifics.”

The moral of the story, says Michell Speight, is bleak.

“I think of the lessons its teaching his daughters,” she said. “Maybe they’re learning that loyalty doesn’t really pay off.”

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