The last 12 months have been filled with loss and grief of all kinds. The Long Beach sports world said goodbye to a number of people, much more than a usual year, with an obituary running almost every other week on the562.org. We take a look back at those we’ve lost. The year began with […]
The Wilson High community is mourning the loss of another lifelong Bruin this week after Kurt Holmes passed away suddenly at his home on Saturday. He was 62. Holmes served as music teacher, marching band director, orchestra director, and golf coach while working at Wilson. “All he ever wanted to do was be at Wilson,” […]
Keith Cordes (left) with Long Beach State volleyball coach Brian Gimmillaro and longtime friend Dan Gooch at a Century Club banquet Longtime Long Beach sports booster and former Century Club president Keith Cordes passed away recently at the age of 81 of pancreatic cancer. Cordes, who was born in August of 1939, was fondly remembered as […]
The Compton community was rocked last week by another shooting death of a young basketball player, Carl Lewis, who was killed near Compton High. Lewis, 19 years old, was a talented player well-known in the city. He is the third teenaged basketball player to be shot and killed in Compton in the last four months, […]
For the last 15 years, the scoreboard inside Walter Pyramid has been at the trusted fingertips of Jim Farrell. The Long Beach State alumnus was a loyal supporter of Beach athletics and a mainstay on the scorer’s table. On the morning of November 8, Farrell died at the age of 69 due to complications from […]
The Long Beach community is mourning the loss of a beloved mentor and longtime Long Beach Poly football assistant Keith “Slice” Thompson, who passed away last week after a battle with cancer. “He was a real community guy who did everything he could to give back and uplift the kids here,” said Poly boys’ athletic […]
Millions of baseball fans across Southern California are rooting for the Dodgers as they try to win their first World Series since 1988—perhaps none louder than Long Beach’s Ford family. The Fords lost the patriarch of their family, Bruce, last November. The longtime Long Beach Port operating engineer’s unexpected passing devastated his wife and five […]
The Wilson High community is still mourning the death of Tierney Kaufman Hutchins. Last month, the accomplished alum and her unborn child, Keira Wade Hutchins, passed away due to complications during pregnancy. Kaufman Hutchins was 35. “Her biggest super power was the ability to connect with people,” her brother Dalton Kaufman said. “She was very […]
Bruce Flanders, the longtime voice of the Grand Prix of Long Beach, passed away last Friday at the age of 75. Flanders had been the official race announcer for the race since 1978, with an energetic and enthusiastic voice that became synonymous with the sunshine and excitement of Long Beach’s signature event. “The ‘Voice of […]
PHOTO BY Stephen Dachman; Susan Pescar and her son Spencer accompany Wilson volleyballer Cynthia Barboza for her induction into the school’s Hall of Fame last Fall. Legendary Wilson volleyball coach Susan Pescar passed away earlier this month at the age of 70 after a long battle with cancer. Pescar, who coached both girls’ and boys’ teams […]