In Memory of Brendan Burke

Brendan Burke, the son of Toronto Maple Leafs GM Brian Buke, passed away on Friday in Indianapolis in a car collision. He was 21.

As some of you may know just a few short months ago Brendan came out to the hockey and sports media as a gay man and the reactions were surprisingly positive and supportive. I was looking forward to Brendan addressing the issues of being a homosexual in professional sports, issues that have been ignored for far too long. He seemed like he would be a positive and strong figure to all young homosexual athletes who may feel as if their orientation and love of sports don`t mix and who might feel they`d have to give up or repress one to pursue the other.

I saw him being a role model in the sports and homosexual community, so that if one day if I or anyone else had a gay son who wanted to play in the NHL he could and he wouldn`t have to hide it nor be ashamed of who he was. I was excited at what the future would bring for Brendan, his father his a powerful figure in the NHL and his brother a scout for Philadelphia, so he definitely had avenues to pioneer this cause.

I admired Brendan for his strength, he seemed like a genuinely good person, and I know he would have been a central figure in bringing equality and comfort to professional hockey. I also gained so much respect for Brian Burke, his statement about his son`s decision to come out publicly actually brought me to tears. Yes he`s a balls of steel, beer drinking,truck driving,ex-hockey player but he also loves his son and he accepts him no matter what.

Pioneers are often misunderstood and mistrusted. But since he wishes to blaze this trail, I stand beside him with an axe! I simply could not be more proud of Brendan than I am, and I love him as much as I admire him. -- Brian Burke

My love, thoughts, and prayers go out to the Burke family and all his friends, he was an amazing person, and he will be very much missed, more than anyone will know.