Many of us are still processing the tragic helicopter crash that took the lives of NBA icon Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter Gianna (lovingly known as Gigi), six other passengers (“John and Keri Altobelli and their daughter Alyssa; Sarah Chester and her daughter Payton; Christina Mauser, who was an assistant coach on the team Kobe Bryant coached,” The Washington Post reported) and pilot Ara Zobayan on January 26, 2020.
In the outpouring of memories from fellow players, reporters, celebrities, and fans, this one from ESPN anchor Elle Duncan just hit differently.
Elle reflects on the one time she met Kobe: “As I approached him, he immediately commented on my rather large eight-month pregnant belly,” she said. “‘How are you? How close are you? What are you having?’ ‘A girl,’ I said, and he then high-fived me. ‘Girls are the best.’”
At the time, Kobe and his wife Vanessa were the proud parents of three girls. Elle asked if he would be interested in having another child. He shared that Vanessa joked about wanting to try again for a boy, but being worried about trying and getting another girl.
“I was like, ‘four girls, are you joking? What would you think? How would you feel?’” Elle said. “Without hesitation he said, ‘I would have five more girls if I could. I’m a girl dad.”
That phrase, “girl dad,” landed on the hearts of many men who saw themselves in Kobe’s obvious love for his daughters. The hashtag #girldad started trending as dads—men who are just at the beginning of their fatherhood journeys to men who are Girl Dads to adult children and even Girl Grandpas—shared pictures of themselves with their daughters, stepdaughters, and granddaughters.
Scroll down for just a few of the hundreds of thousands of Instagram posts and tweets from proud girl dads.
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I love my girls! They give me so much life! Thank you God for Kenzie and Laya! #girldad #ripgigi
