NBA legend Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna Bryant have been buried.
Their private Los Angeles funeral happened just two weeks after the pair—along with passengers Christina Mauser, John Altobelli, Keri Altobelli, Alyssa Altobelli, Sarah Chester, Payton Chester and pilot Ara Zobayan—tragically died in a helicopter crash.
At the time of the helicopter crash, Kobe, his daughter and friends were headed for a basketball tournament at Kobe’s Mamba Sport Academy.
Though the ceremony was held privately, a public memorial will be held on February 24 at the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles, giving fans an opportunity to pay their respects.
Kobe and Gianna Bryant private funeral held at Pacific View Memorial Park in Corona Del Mar, California, on Friday, February 7, two weeks after they died in a helicopter crash.
The legendary NBA star is survived by his wife, Vanessa Bryant, and their three other children – Natalia, 17, Bianka, 3, and Capri, 7 months.
A source reported:
“VANESSA AND THE FAMILY WANTED A PRIVATE SERVICE TO MOURN THEIR LOSS. THE CEREMONY WAS EXTREMELY HARD FOR EVERYONE AS IT’S STILL HARD FOR THEM TO GRASP THEY LOST TWO BEAUTIFUL SOULS.”
Kobe’s wife Vanessa Bryant is struggling to come to terms with this immense loss. The mom of four wrote on Instagram:
“I’VE BEEN RELUCTANT TO PUT MY FEELINGS INTO WORDS.
MY BRAIN REFUSES TO ACCEPT THAT BOTH KOBE AND GIGI ARE GONE. I CAN’T PROCESS BOTH AT THE SAME TIME. IT’S LIKE I’M TRYING TO PROCESS KOBE BEING GONE BUT MY BODY REFUSES TO ACCEPT MY GIGI WILL NEVER COME BACK TO ME. IT FEELS WRONG.”
“WHY SHOULD I BE ABLE TO WAKE UP ANOTHER DAY WHEN MY BABY GIRL ISN’T BEING ABLE TO HAVE THAT OPPORTUNITY?!
I’M SO MAD. SHE HAD SO MUCH LIFE TO LIVE.
THEN I REALIZE I NEED TO BE STRONG AND BE HERE FOR MY 3 DAUGHTERS. MAD I’M NOT WITH KOBE AND GIGI BUT THANKFUL I’M HERE WITH NATALIA, BIANKA AND CAPRI.
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.
GOD I WISH THEY WERE HERE AND THIS NIGHTMARE WOULD BE OVER. PRAYING FOR ALL OF THE VICTIMS OF THIS HORRIBLE TRAGEDY. PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR ALL