Service held for Houston native killed in Nairobi attack

HOUSTON – Family and friends gathered at a Houston cemetery to remember Jason Spindler, one of the 21 people killed in an extremist attack last week in Nairobi at a luxury hotel and shopping complex.

The Houston Chronicle reports the 40-year-old was remembered as a compassionate person who was close to his family at the burial service Thursday at Beth Yeshurun Cemetery.

Childhood friend Justin Esch said, “People like Jason do not just happen — they’re made.”

Al-Shabab, which is linked to al-Qaida, claimed responsibility for the Jan. 15 attack in which extremists stormed the complex with guns and explosives.

Spindler, who grew up in Houston, had been living in Kenya for about five years. He was the co-founder of I-DEV International, a San Francisco-based company that matches investors to emerging markets.