The death a week ago this Sunday of the former basketball star Kobe Bryant has caused heartbreak, particularly in the Latino community, not just around the country and in his adopted city of Los Angeles — where nearly half of the city is of Latino ancestry — but also among at the University of Nevada, Reno.

“He did not only play basketball, but everyone can appreciate his philanthropy of having a connection with the Latino community and also I thought it was cool how he made it a regular basis [sic] to visit children’s hospitals,” said Monica Thayer, criminal justice major, minor in Spanish at UNR.

For her parte, Yara Simón noted that “Kobe also credited ‘Sábado Gigante’ (a successful variety show hosted by the Chilean Mario Kreutzberger, known on air as “Don Francisco”) with helping him perfect his Spanish”.

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My girls and I want to thank the millions of people who’ve shown support and love during this horrific time. Thank you for all the prayers. We definitely need them. We are completely devastated by the sudden loss of my adoring husband, Kobe — the amazing father of our children; and my beautiful, sweet Gianna — a loving, thoughtful, and wonderful daughter, and amazing sister to Natalia, Bianka, and Capri. We are also devastated for the families who lost their loved ones on Sunday, and we share in their grief intimately. There aren’t enough words to describe our pain right now. I take comfort in knowing that Kobe and Gigi both knew that they were so deeply loved. We were so incredibly blessed to have them in our lives. I wish they were here with us forever. They were our beautiful blessings taken from us too soon. I’m not sure what our lives hold beyond today, and it’s impossible to imagine life without them. But we wake up each day, trying to keep pushing because Kobe, and our baby girl, Gigi, are shining on us to light the way. Our love for them is endless — and that’s to say, immeasurable. I just wish I could hug them, kiss them and bless them. Have them here with us, forever. Thank you for sharing your joy, your grief and your support with us. We ask that you grant us the respect and privacy we will need to navigate this new reality. To honor our Team Mamba family, the Mamba Sports Foundation has set up the MambaOnThree Fund to help support the other families affected by this tragedy. To donate, please go to MambaOnThree.org. To further Kobe and Gianna’s legacy in youth sports, please visit MambaSportsFoundation.org. Thank you so much for lifting us up in your prayers, and for loving Kobe, Gigi, Natalia, Bianka, Capri and me. #Mamba #Mambacita #GirlsDad #DaddysGirls #Family ❤️

A post shared by Vanessa Bryant 🦋 (@vanessabryant) on Jan 29, 2020 at 4:59pm PST

Another student remembered this quote from Bryant: “Everything negative — pressure, challenges — is all an opportunity for me to rise,” which the student took as inspirational, motivating, and comforting. “Life is not always perfect and it’s when we are in our darkest time where we are truly tested,” the student added.

In the aftermath of his death, Los Angeles Times reporter, Gustavo Arellano, looked at the connections between Bryant and the Latino community, in part since he had learn Spanish because his wife, Vanessa (Urbieta Cornejo Laine) Bryant, is of Mexican ancestry.

“Sometimes, the couple and their daughters dined in [at restaurants]; when Kobe didn’t want to draw attention, he’d sneak in through the back to hang out with workers and greet everyone in Spanish,” Arellano said.

Another way Bryant showed his embrace of the Latino community was through a his shoes. He created sneakers patterned after a Mexican poncho called the “Kobe 8 NSW Lifestyle LE ‘Mexican Blanket.”

In addition to Bryant, another eight people died in the helicopter crash on Sunday, Jan. 26 in Southern California. Those included his daughter Gianna Bryant, John Altobelli, Keri Altobelli, and their daughter Alyssa Altobelli, Sarah Chester and her daughter Payton Chester, Christina Mauser, and pilot Ara Zobayan.

Several days after Bryant’s death, his widow broke her silence with a post on Instagram in which she encouraged fans to honor their family by also helping the other families suffering from this tragedy. To do so, fans can donate to the Mamba Sports Foundation at MambaOnThree.org. –CC