Longtime Shawangunk Town Justice Kevin Hunt died unexpectedly at his Wallkill home on Thursday evening.

Hunt was elected to his fifth four-year term in Nov. 2021. The Shawangunk Town Board will appoint a replacement to serve the remainder of 2023 and 2024. The remaining one year of Hunt’s term will then be decided by voters in next year’s general election.

Hunt, 74, became involved in politics by joining the town’s Environmental Management Council (EMC) in 1988. He became a town councilman in 1990 and was elected town supervisor in 1992 where he served for six years.

Hunt served one term in the Ulster County Legislature.

Town Supervisor John Valk, who said he first met Hunt in 1988 when they both served on the town’s environmental commission, was saddened by Hunt’s unexpected death.

“Kevin was one of my closest friends,” Valk said. “We started on the town board together in 1990. He was always there and would help different people. Last month, for instance, he was very active in a fundraiser to raise money for a family with a young baby that needed special care.”

Valk said Hunt was known for his motto, “Life is good.”

“It’s quite a shock,” Valk said. “He was in town that day and people were saying, ‘I saw him. I just talked with him.’’

Valk said Hunt was known for showing compassion for those who appeared before him in Town Court.

“He always felt that a lot of people who made a mistake might only be in court one time,” Valk said. “He tried to make it a pleasant experience for people. If they got a speeding ticket, he said it wasn’t the end of the world.”

Valk said Hunt would rather send people to driver’s training if they received a ticket than give them a hefty fine.

“He felt if they just paid a fine that they wouldn’t learn anything,” Valk said.

Hunt also started day court on Thursday mornings to help residents avoid costly fees for having their attorney come out at night, Valk said.

Mike Voss, the other town justice in Shawangunk, said he appreciated Hunt helping him learn the ropes when he was first elected 12 years ago.

“When I was first elected, Kevin had all the experience in the world and I leaned on him quite a lot,” Voss said. “I was a police officer for 22 years and I had a lot of court experience. Judges have different personalities, but most of them are pretty strict and don’t have much of a sense of humor. Kevin, when he sensed that the atmosphere in the courtroom was a little too intense, he always managed to lighten it up somehow. But he did his job 100 percent. It’s hard to believe he’s not going to be around anymore. It’s quite a shock.”

According to Hunt’s obituary, he served in the Armed Forces as a young man. He continued his service by joining the Department of Corrections as a corrections officer and retired 27 years later as a Deputy Superintendent for Programs.

He owned and operated Hunt Ceramic Tile for over 30 years.

Hunt loved driving, building and rebuilding motorcycles and muscle cars since he was a young man. He found contentment in both the menial things in life like chopping wood as well as the finer things such as expensive wine and imported cigars.