Shaquil Barrett: Every day is a battle after my daughter's death
Buccaneers edge rusher Shaquil Barrett and his family suffered a terrible loss in May when Barrett’s two-year old daughter Arrayah drowned in the swimming pool at the family’s house.
Barrett joined the team for minicamp in the spring and spoke to reporters for the first time since Arrayah’s death on Monday. Barrett said his daughter was “everything” to him and that it remains difficult to get through each day without her.
“This is a daily battle. Tough battle,” Barrett said, via Jenna Laine of ESPN.com. “Today I felt it heavier today than I did the last couple days. Her smile — I just miss her so much. Her energy, just like putting her to bed every night, reading stories. She just brought so much brightness and wholeness and completeness to our lives. And we most definitely have a big, big, big, big, big hole in our hearts and our lives that we won’t be able to fill.”
Barrett and his wife Jordanna are expecting another child, which Barrett calls “bittersweet” because Arrayah would have been “the best big sister.” They are also starting a foundation called Arrayah Hope that intends to provide free swim lessons to children in the Tampa area in hopes of avoiding other tragedies in the future.
Source: NBC Sports
