I've gotten a lot of bad news across the social media wire the past several years, but rarely has anything I read in my Preds threads made me want to throw my phone across the room until I saw the news about Ben last night. I met him a couple of times, and he was a joy to be around.
He was a light, and Smashville is a little dimmer today. Not only was he the funny fat guy pumping up the crowd with the crazy painted stomach, he was a so much more to the close-knit hockey community in Nashville - as Paul so eloquently stated.
I am praying for his wife and child. What a loss. Ugh.
Here's hoping the Preds play their best game of the season tonight to lift our spirits a bit. I know fans of teams are not celebrities. But I hope the Preds & Paul could put together a brief tribute video with some of his highlights for a future home game. It might be one of the most popular tribute videos ever!
Never heard of him or seen him, never been to Nashville, but I feel it from your writing. Thanks for sharing, those characters are always good fortune to all of us.
A very nice tribute, Paul. Life is a fragile, precious thing. Ben did things of value and treated others with kindness during his. He is a great example to us all.
