For the first time since the death of Kobe Bryant, his widow,Vanessa, made a public statement in an Instagram post about the loss of her husband and their 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, in Sunday's helicopter crash.
In a lengthy caption accompanying a beautiful family portrait of the couple with their four daughters, Vanessa wrote, "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."
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."
Vanessa went on to add that she's not certain what the future holds, "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." (Instagram)