Vanessa Bryant is trying to hold everything together for her three children in the wake of Kobe and her daughter Gianna's deaths on Sunday (January 26).
In a new report for PEOPLE, a close family friendly shared some insight about the widowed wife after losing her husband and 13-year-old daughter in the helicopter crash in Calabasas, California. "It’s an extremely difficult and devastating time for Vanessa and the whole family," the unnamed source told the mag, while another insider described Vanessa as "devastated."
"She can hardly keep it together," the insider continued. "She can’t finish a sentence without crying. But she is working very hard to pull it together for the other girls. She now has to be the strong one. Of course, you can never be prepared for this. Despite their ups and downs, [Vanessa and Kobe] were soulmates. She thought of him as her partner for life."
While she continues to grieve over her family, the insider said that she has a "good support system" and "relying on her faith" at the time. "She is not alone. But she will be grieving this for a very long time," the insider said.
As you know, the former Los Angeles Lakers' life was cut short after his helicopter crashed, killing all nine passengers on board, including Gianna. Bryant was 41. They are survived by Vanessa, as well as children,Natalia, 17,Bianka, 3, and Capri, 7 months.