Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna Bryant, have been laid to rest.
ET has learned that a private funeral for the two was held in Corona Del Mar, California, last Friday, two weeks after they died in a helicopter crash alongside seven others. The legendary NBA star is survived by his wife, Vanessa Bryant, and the three other children they shared, Natalia, 17, Bianka, 3, and Capri, 7 months.
“Vanessa and the family wanted a private service to mourn their loss,” a source tells ET. “The ceremony was extremely hard for everyone as it’s still hard for them to grasp they lost two beautiful souls.”
In addition to the private funeral, a public memorial will be held for Kobe and Gianna on Monday, Feb. 24 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, where the athlete played professional basketball with the Lakers for the entirety of his 20-year career. “24” is a special date, as it’s the number Kobe sported on his journey since the 2006-07 season. It’s the same number he had in high school at Lower Merion.
Vanessa confirmed the date and time of the upcoming public memorial via her Instagram. She shared that it will start at 10 a.m., posting artwork with purple and yellow butterflies.
On Jan. 30, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti confirmed that a memorial was being planned in honor of the basketball icon, as well as the eight other victims of the crash.
“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,” Garcetti told the Los Angeles Times, referencing Gianna, along with Alyssa Altobelli, John Altobelli, Keri Altobelli, Payton Chester, Sarah Chester, Christina Mauser and Ara Zobayan.
“We don’t have that date finalized but we’ve been talking every day to the Lakers, and most importantly, to [Bryant’s widow, Vanessa] as well,” he continued. “I think one message that I would say is this is not just about a man who was a basketball player, this is about a father, this is about a leader, this is about a filmmaker, this is about an artist, this is about somebody who was so much more than just how he was on the court.”
