Vanessa Bryant, wife of Kobe Bryant and mother of Gianna Bryant, has spoken publicly for the first time since losing her husband and daughter to the tragic helicopter accident that occurred on Sunday in Calabasas. After making her formerly private Instagram profile public, and changing her profile picture to one of Gianna and Kobe hugging, Vanessa posted a family photo and paired it with a heartfelt statement honoring her loved ones, as well as the families of the other victims involved in the crash.
Vanessa Bryant started off the highly anticipated post by stating, “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.”
Vanessa also expressed her vulnerability at the fact that she is, “not sure what life holds beyond today” being that, “it is impossible to imagine life without them. Married for nearly 20 years, Vanessa was often referred to as the “Queen Mamba” to Kobe’s “Black Mamba”. According to Global News, Kobe and Vanessa met in 1999 when Vanessa was 17 and Kobe was 20. Though the couple faced family disapproval, Vanessa and Kobe traversed the odds and were married in April of 2001.
Since her statement celebrities and supporters from all over have reached out to Vanessa with messages of love and hope in this beyond difficult time. Ellen DeGeneres reached out in support saying, “There is so much love in the world for you right now. I hope you can feel it.” In her Instagram post, Vanessa also wrote that her and her girls will continue to move on and press forward each day because, “Kobe, and our baby girl, Gigi, are shining on us to light the way”.
As she concluded her beautiful statement, Vanessa paid tribute to the families of the other victims lost in the tragedy. “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., ” she wrote, highlighting the ability for her followers to assist and make a difference for those suffering from this loss.
