In Honor Of Derrick Manuel Rose Sr.

Hello everyone, I am Derrick Rose Jr. and my father passed away in his sleep at the young age of 49. It’s been a rough week for me, losing my dad this early. I am 24 years old, and my younger brother is only 20, this has been a nightmare. No kid should ever have to go through this so soon in life. My father had an immense love for sports (especially for all of his LA teams), and the game of basketball. Being Rhode Island natives, loving the Lakers was a big no-no out in the New England area. We were surrounded by so many Celtics fans, but my dad didn’t care. He loved it, and talked trash to everyone, about how the Lakers were the greatest team ever. It wasn’t just about his Lakers though, when it came to basketball. He loved his UCLA Bruins, and tried to encourage my brother and I to go there for college. We heard it day in and day out. When it came time for me to start choosing schools, UCLA was on my list. When it came down to my decision, I decided to attend Providence College. I wanted to be my own man. I didn’t know how my dad would perceive this. I always followed my dad and wanted to be like him. The mannerisms, the teams I’d root for, I even made sure that I drove a Honda. When I told him that I was going to be a Friar, he was okay with it. He was proud of me no matter what. What made my decision even better was that there would be a new basketball coach at the school. This person was family, and a former high school teammate of my father. His name was Ed Cooley. My dad helped me reach out to him, because he knew that I had dreams of becoming a Division 1 college basketball coach. Long story short, I spent college learning under Coach Cooley, as a student manager. I made connections and networked with people, that others dream about meeting. Basketball opened up new doors for me. Developing relationships with names like Magic Johnson, James Worthy, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Rich Gotham, Doris Burke, Ed Cooley, Andre LaFleur, Kris Dunn, Michael Carter-Williams, Bryce Cotton, Ben Bentil, LaDontae Henton, Kadeem Batts, Ricky Ledo, Vincent Council, and the list goes on and on. All of this, was because of my dad. He passed on his love for basketball to me, and created the path for me. He had so many connections that allowed me to meet some of the people mentioned above. I was getting the most out of the game of basketball because of my dad, and those who loved my dad. Basketball truly did give back. I got to be a part of a Big East Championship team, and witness so many NCAA Tournament berths. My brother is also a Friar, and I think because of all of this, it is safe to say my Dad loved the Friars. The Providence Friars became my Dad’s second favorite college basketball team. Although the Bruins were his favorite, the Friars were right behind them, as close as they possibly could be. Knowing my Dad he would want to give back and help. He always wanted to help the youth in any way possible. He would have wanted to help the very basketball program that made a difference in my life, but also the program led by one of the closest people in his life, Ed Cooley. Thus, in honor of my father, we would like to raise money to send at least 5 children, to the Ed Cooley Basketball Camp over at Providence College. If we can send more, that would be surreal! Anything helps! Thank you so much!