Emotional farewell to teen basketball star gunned down last month
BRONXVILLE, New York (WABC) -- An emotional funeral was held Wednesday for a Bronx teen who was gunned down at a barbecue last month.
Classmates, friends and teammates came to honor 17-year-old Brandon Hendricks.
Some even paid tribute to the teen by wearing basketball jerseys with Hendrick's number five.
Friends of Hendricks said that he showed love to everyone, even if you were a stranger.
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Hendrick's family has been devastated by the tragic death of this teenager whose life, some have said, held so much promise.
"Maybe God had a different plan," Hendrick's uncle Noel Ellison said. "He had a good 17 years. He was a good son, a good nephew, a good child."
The homegoing service, which filled the First Baptist Church of Bronxville, was led by Reverend Al Sharpton.
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Hendricks, who was an innocent bystander at a birthday barbecue in the Bronx on June 28, was fatally shot in the neck just days after graduating from James Monroe High School.
He was a standout basketball player and was planning to attend St. John's University, and also hoped to play basketball there.
"He is a young man who did everything right," Hendrick's basketball coach Nigel Thompson said. "He made his mom and his family proud. He made his coaches and teachers and his friends proud."
Now they mourn his death in many ways.
In honor of Hendricks, a scholarship fund has been set up in his name.
"Every July 15, you will remember this day, I want you to remember it as a day Brandon inspired others to complete his journey," Sharpton said.
The National Action Network was the first to donate, making a contribution of $5,000.
Every July 15, the family will decide a recipient of scholarship.
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