As she tries to pick up the pieces after unthinkable tragedy, she’s leaning on the support of her family, network and community.
Vanessa Bryant, wife of late basketball star Kobe Bryant, took to Instagram on Friday on the occasion of Valentine’s Day with a lovely picture of the pair, set to a snippet from the song Tell Him by Lauryn Hill.
‘To my forever Valentine, I love you so much,’Vanessa, 37, wrote in the caption. ‘Missing you so much on your favorite holiday. Te amo per sempre. Kisses to you and Gigi in heaven. Happy Valentine’s Day, my babies. With all my love, your boo-boo. ❤️’
Heartbreaking: Vanessa Bryant, wife of late basketball star Kobe Bryant, took to Instagram on Friday on the occasion of Valentine’s Day with a lovely picture of the pair
She highlighted the part of Hill’s song, off her historic 1998 record The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, which sings: ‘Though I may suffer | I’ll envy it not | And endure what comes | ‘Cause he’s all that I got | and tell him | Tell him I need him | Tell him I love him’.
It was one of several posts Vanessa has shared since making her Instagram account public in the wake of the helicopter crash that took the lives of her husband Kobe, their 13-year-old daughter Gigi, and seven others on January 26th in Calabasas, California.
Another came earlier this week, when she posted a collection of video footage of her daughter Gianna laughing and playing basketball, next to which she wrote ‘My brain refuses to accept that both Kobe and Gigi are gone.’
Toward the end of the post, she said ‘I know what I’m feeling is normal. It’s part of the grieving process. I just wanted to share in case there’s anyone out there that’s experienced a loss like this.’
Grieving: It was one of several posts Vanessa has shared since making her Instagram account public in the wake of the helicopter crash that took the lives of her husband Kobe and their 13-year-old daughter Gigi last month; seen here in 2010
Another came earlier this week: Vanessa posted a collection of video footage of her daughter Gianna laughing and playing basketball, next to which she wrote ‘My brain refuses to accept that both Kobe and Gigi are gone’
And just a few days before that, Bryant posted a public invitation to an upcoming memorial to be held at the Staples Center, where Kobe’s basketball team the Los Angeles Lakers call home.
The date for the memorial will be Monday February 24th, which as she explained in the caption is significant because her daughter’s jersey number was #2, her husband’s was #24, and 20 signifies both the number of years Kobe played for the Lakers, as well as how long he and Vanessa had been together before his untimely passing.
The invitation was decorated with 24 butterflies.
And on Friday, additional details pertaining to the public memorial service were made available — mainly, that the event will be for ticket holders only, but that proceeds from ticket sales will go to his Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation.
A date with meaning: And just a few days before that, Bryant posted a public invitation to an upcoming memorial to be held at the Staples Center
According to the Lakers, tickets will cost either $224 or $24.02, and fans can register to purchase tickets through Ticketmaster starting this Friday, before they go on general sale next Wednesday.
Proceeds from the memorial will benefit the Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation, which was set up by Kobe and was previously known as the Mamba Sports Foundation before his widow altered the name to honor daughter Gianna as well as Kobe.
According to Vanessa’s post, the public memorial will begin at 10 am on February 24, and organizers have already allocated tickets to a large number of invited guests made up of family members, friends, celebrities, and current and former stars from the NBA.
Before: Proceeds from the memorial will benefit the Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation, renamed as such by Vanessa to honor their late daughter Gianna as well; seen in 2010
The event will also pay tribute to the other seven people who lost their lives in the crash: John Altobelli, Keri Altobelli, Alyssa Altobelli, Sarah Chester, Payton Chester, Christina Mauser and pilot Ara Zobayan.
The memorial will also be televised, but there are reportedly no plans for a procession or other events outside of the Staples Center that day.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti confirmed plans for the memorial last month, when he said: ‘There will absolutely be a memorial to mark the contributions of this incredible man and not only him, but to commemorate the loss of his daughter and all the other families that were there. We don’t have that date finalized but we’ve been talking every day to the Lakers, and most importantly, to Vanessa as well.’
Gone but not forgotten: Vanessa seen here with Kobe and Gianna in 2012