dude....
if you dont follow d1 college and nhl hockey then you prolly havent heard of a guy called brendan... brendan burke.. son of one brian burke, nhl big wig and general manager of the toronto maple leafs.. hes imposing and impressive... when he shouts, people listen.. when brendan died, brian cried, and people listened.. theyre still listening...
brendan burke... hes one of my hockey heros.... he came out publicly a year ago.... or the year before a year ago.. (i was sick that year and not paying particular attention) he was the student manager for his d1 college hockey team, the miami of ohio redhawks.. the number one ranked ncaa mens ice hockey team in the nation...
he was my hero before he died... he was newly openly gay.. from a proud, old school hockey family, former player, student manager and probable nhl big shot like his dad, or even probable big shot lawyer/politician guy... i was devastated when he died.... i still get a little emotional when i read about him.. or think about his life, see his picture, hear his name....
but - boys. dont. cry. ..
i was a member of a very cool group of people who met everyday on a blog and later on a forum, to laugh and chat, and cry, and just be goofy with each other... that it blew up in my face changes nothing about how i feel... but one thing that came out of that was the bond we formed with each other around brendan burkes life story.... many of us gay athletes, gay hockey players, looked to brendan to bring something new to pro sports for all of us lgbt athletes.. especially in hockey... a safe and welcoming environment in which we could be openly lgbt and play our game with pride and passion as full members of the team...
im proud that his family have continued to move forward with the work that brendan believed in, and send my thanks and praise to the burke family... i hope we see them in the toronto gay pride parade... brian said as much after brendans death..
i stumbled upon this article written by brendans older brother, patrick... http://www.outsports.com/os/index.php/component/content/article/59-columns/322-never-forgotten-patrick-burke-remembers-his-pioneering-brother-brendan
again... boys. dont. cry. .. k, i did, a little....
read it, dont read it... its up to you... comment if you care, just be respectful... brendan is one of my hockey heros...
“There are a lot of gay athletes out there and gay people working in pro sports that deserve to know that there are safe environments where people are supportive of you regardless of your sexual orientation.” - Brendan Burke
brendan dude...
you are my hero.. i am older than you, but you were, are and will always be my hockey hero..
- cheers.. david
