Vanessa Bryant Posts Heartbreaking Photo of Daughter Holding Photo of Late Father Kobe Bryant

Vanessa Bryant has taken to Instagram to post a heartbreaking photo of her Daughter holding a photo of her late father, Kobe Bryant. On her private page, Bryant shared the image of three-year-old daughter Bianka holding a framed picture of her “DaDa,” as reported by the Daily Mail. The black and white photo was from Kobe’s early years with the Lakers, as he is noticeably younger.

Tragedy struck the Bryant family in January, when both Kobe and his 13-year-daughter Gianna died in a helicopter crash. The pair were headed to a youth basketball tournament with a number of other players, parents, and coaches. The crash killed all 9 people on board Kobe’s private helicopter, including the pilot. Kobe was 42 years old at the time of his death.

In her first comments after the deaths of her husband and daughter, Vanessa took Instagram to express her gratitude for all the support they had received from fans. “My girls and I want to thank the millions of people who’ve shown support and love during this horrific time,” she wrote.

“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,” she added, referring to the other children she shared with Kobe.

“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.”

Along with the Bryant family, it seems as if the entire world has mourned the death of Kobe and Gianna. In his first statement to Lakers fans, following the tragedy, Lebron James said, “Everybody that’s here is, this really, truly, truly a family, and I know Kobe and Gianna and Vanessa and everybody thank you guys from the bottom of their hearts as Kobe said, Tonight is a celebration. Kobe’s a brother to me.”

He added, “From the time I was in high school and watching him from afar to getting in this league at 18 watching him up close, all the battles we had throughout my career, the one thing that we always shared is that determination to just want to win and just want to be great, and the fact that I’m here now means so much to me.”