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In the interest of speed and timeliness, this story is fed directly from the Associated Press newswire and may contain spelling or grammatical errors.
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Relatives, coaches, Hammer honor Dennehy at gospel-filled service
Friday August 08, 2003
By RACHEL KONRAD
Associated Press Writer
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) Family, friends and Baylor University
officials gathered for Patrick Dennehy's memorial, remembering the
slain basketball player as a young man strengthened by a rekindled
faith as he struggled to balance basketball, academics and family.
``He was as much a man as he was a boy, as easygoing as he was
stubborn,'' girlfriend Jessica De La Rosa, 20, told more than 300
people at Jubilee Christian Center. ``There was nothing at all
simple about that guy ... but he still makes me smile and laugh
because there were so many things about him that were wonderful.''
Dennehy, who transferred to Baylor last year after getting
kicked off the team at New Mexico for temper tantrums, became a
born-again Christian in June 2002.
``The Bible says that whoever calls on the name of the Lord
shall be saved, and Patrick did that a year ago,'' Jubilee Pastor
Dick Bernal said as mourners wept and at times held their palms up
to the sky. ``He was still a kid, and he did some foolish things
like all of us did as young men. There are questions that need to
be answered, but we believe by God's grace they'll be answered by
his divine providence.''
Dennehy, 21, was last seen near Baylor's campus in Waco, Texas,
on June 12. His body was found in a field a few miles away last
month.
Carlton Dotson, 21, Dennehy's roommate and former teammate, was
arrested and charged with murder July 21, after reportedly telling
authorities he shot Dennehy when Dennehy tried to shoot him. He is
in a Maryland jail and could be extradited to Texas.
Thursday's two-hour service featured a dozen gold-robed gospel
singers, two electric guitars and a Scripture reading by Hammer.
The rap star was a Jubilee minister in the late '90s, when he led a
Sunday night hip-hop service at the nondenominational church.
Nearly a dozen Baylor officials, including President Robert B.
Sloan Jr. and coach Dave Bliss, attended the memorial. The
university will hold its own memorial Aug. 28 in Waco.
(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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