RIP Hank

Hank Gathers, a high school basketball star from Philadelphia who went on to college fame at Loyola Marymount University, died 20 years ago day. Every anniversary, Hank Gathers's death teaches another lesson. Two decades on, it teaches us the unstoppable flow of time. Whether we're ready or not, life goes on.

I remember quite vividly, as an 8-year old boy, recently introduced to the concept of death, trying to grapple with its finality, watching SportsCenter and hearing of the death of Hank Gathers. I can see the pictures of that night now. I can feel the spontaneous tears rolling down my cheeks. It reinforced the reality that a boy's heroes can die, whether it's a father or a basketball star.