Vanessa Bryant has been inundated with support after breaking her silence on her husband and daughter’s deaths.
The 37-year-old model took to Instagram on Wednesday (29.01.20) to express her devastation after basketball legend Kobe Bryant and their 13-year-old daughter Gianna passed away alongside seven others in a helicopter crash on Sunday (26.01.20) and her comments were quickly filled with messages of love and prayers.
Ellen DeGeneres – who gave a lengthy tribute to Kobe on her talk show earlier this week – wrote: "There is so much love in the world for you right now. I hope you can feel it."
Sarah Michelle Gellar added: ""You and your family, and the families of the others lost, are in everyone’s thoughts, prayers and hearts."
Derek Hough offered: "Anything and everything we can do for you and the families affected. We love you."
Lily Aldridge simply posted: "Sending all my love and prayers."
Dakota Fanning wrote: "Praying for your family.and I hope you feel that today and everyday."
La La Anthony pledged: "Love you deep V. Forever and always by ur side [heart and prayer emojis] (sic)"
Martha Hunt posted: "Sending boundless love, light, and strength. God bless."
And NeNe Leakes wrote: "My most deepest condolences to you Vanessa! My heart bleeds for you and the other families! Lifting you up in prayer."
In her post, Vanessa – who also has 17-year-old Natalia, three-year-old Bianka, and seven-month-old Capri with Kobe – thanked fans for their support.
She wrote in a lengthy Instagram post: "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. (sic)"
She went on to express her heartbreak for the other seven people involved in the crash and their families, and said there are "no words" to describe the "pain" she is going through.
She added: "We are also devastated for the families who lost their loved ones on Sunday, and we share in their grief intimately.
"There aren’t enough words to describe our pain right now. I take comfort in knowing that Kobe and Gigi both knew that they were so deeply loved. We were so incredibly blessed to have them in our lives. I wish they were here with us forever. They were our beautiful blessings taken from us too soon. (sic)"
And the star closed her message by asking fans to donate to the MambaOnThree Fund, which was set up by the Mamba Sports Academy, where Gianna played basketball.
Stars offer support to Vanessa Bryant
