Sam Heiser

Bobby,

I don’t even know where to start. As hard as this has been, I’ve been given the opportunity to truly see how many people’s lives you touched just through talking to our friends and teammates, and it has allowed me to view this tragedy in a different light. I keep looking back to the first time we met. You came to Lyle with Andrew and I just remember how friendly you were and how quickly I was able to get to know you because you treated every new person you met as if you had known them your entire life. I vividly remember you jumping off the rope swing at the river without hesitation, something that the rest of us there were too scared to ever do. That’s just who you were. You lived life with so much passion and fearlessness and I always admired that. If you wanted something, you gave everything you had in order to get it. The one thing I was always telling those guys about you was how successful you were going to be. Your work ethic was something I had never seen in someone our age. I remember you delivering food for 12 hours a day and I never understood how you did it. That’s just who you were. You understood better than anyone that if you wanted something, you had to work for it. I pray that I can carry on your work ethic in my own life. 

After that trip to Lyle, I could never have imagined that our paths would cross again in the way that they did. I remember feeling so scared and helpless when my manager told me he was going to trade me to Butte. I know you remember how awful that place was Bobs. I was so lost, and I began thinking about anything I could do in order to avoid being sent there. Looking back now, I am so thankful that God told me to call you. You were the only person I knew playing somewhere else in the league, and in a time of desperation, I called you and asked if you guys needed a forward in Seattle. My hopes were not high, and I felt there was no chance anything would transpire before that call. I couldn’t have been more wrong. I remember how excited you were, and you immediately talked to Murph. Within the span of a week, I went from being told that I was going to a place that I felt would take away my passion for the game I loved, to heading to a place that I had known and loved since I began playing hockey. All because of you. Bobby Skinner. A kid I had met once. You constantly displayed selflessness and kindness, even to people you hardly knew. That’s just who you were. It’s one thing to do something nice for someone, but it’s a completely different form of love and selflessness to do things for others every day, and that’s what you did. After the trade, I remember being in awe that would help me the way that you did, but I could never have deserved what you did for me next. You offered for me to live in your home. And not only did you offer, you and your parents welcomed me into your home and immediately treated me like I was family. I knew from the first day I lived with you where your sense of love and unconditional kindness came from. Your parents took me in and treated me like I was their son. Just writing that leaves me speechless. I wish I had the words to describe how incredibly thankful and blessed I am to have lived with people that impacted me the way that you and your family did. That’s a different kind of love, one that I could never have asked for or deserved. 

I wish that I could write out every story I have with you that I keep close to my heart. There isn’t enough paper and ink in the world for that. In saying that, there are still a few things that I want to talk about that I think of every time I hear your name. I will miss our late night Oasis runs for the rest of my life. We loved that place, and I’ll never forget the night you picked me up from the airport over spring break and took time out of your day to get me a Thai tea. It was something that seems like a small act of kindness, but held so much meaning and just displays the kind of friend that you were. I think back to the day that we played pond hockey in Madison park and you fell through the ice. I remember the rush of fear I had as I skated over to help you turn to complete happiness when I saw you climb out of the water laughing harder than I’d ever seen. That laugh, man. That laugh still makes me smile to this day. There wasn’t a person in the world you couldn’t cheer up with your laugh alone. There also wasn’t a person that you didn’t strive to make happy. It was the quality I have always admired most about you. Your never-ending desire to make others feel loved and wanted is something that I didn’t know existed until I met you. Whether it was going to hangout with someone that was having a tough day or showing new teammates around Seattle, you never felt you were too important to give your time and energy to others. 

It’s been so hard to wrap my head around this. You were the last person to ever deserve this. My heart aches for your family and your friends that were lucky enough to have you in their lives. You were such a bright light in my life, one that cut through my darkest days. My heart also aches for the people that didn’t get to have you in their life. And that’s what breaks my heart the most. Your future wife, children, grandchildren, friends and family were all robbed of an amazing man, one that would have changed an immeasurable number of lives. I pray every day that I don’t allow anger to play apart in losing you because I should be nothing but thankful. I am so unbelievably blessed that God put you into my life for the time that he did. Because of you, I made friendships and memories that will last my entire life, all because of you. I am so thankful that for the time that you were in my life, I was able to experience a form of friendship and love that I will be able to look back on as the standard of what a true friend is. It’s hard to accept that this was God’s time for you to go. The world needed more than 22 years of you. But I know that he has a plan for you and I find peace in knowing that you’re in a better place than all of us. I couldn’t have asked for a better angel watching over me, and I know that our paths will cross again someday Bobs. I love you so much and I will forever carry you with me in my heart.

Your friend and brother,

Sam 

Aaron Williams

It was a typical day August 23, as I was preparing for moving in residents to start their lives here at Boise State. I was super busy unloading boxes and making sure all the dorms where ready for students as they embarked on life in college. I was out and about working nonstop not even checking my phone. As the day progressed all of a sudden it was time for me to lay my head down. That night felt strange as I could not put my finger on it, maybe it was all the stress I had going on because of school starting or maybe I was just anxious. I really had no clue what was going on. The next day August 24 I woke up with lack of sleep but still had my job to do within housing. I showed up to the office bright and early. I was kind of down, but I contributed that to lack of sleep. As I repeated my day as yesterday the same thing happened where time flew by.

Walking back from the office at around 10:30 I’m going through my social media mindlessly. Then all of a sudden, I see a post that says R.I.P. Bobby. I was taken off guard as I did not think it was real at all. Followed by this post I got a call from Jesse we played hockey together for BSU. He confirmed that Bobby has passed away. I stopped where I was and broke down. I was in complete shock as it did not add up at all. My stomach dropped and my heart raced. I met up with my team family and just started crying. This whole day felt unreal. It felt as if I got that news and my life came to a complete stop. Looking back at how Bobby shaped my life he has impacted it in more ways than one. 

When I got to Boise State he was one of the first individuals that was there for me as I made the move from South Central Los Angeles to Idaho. Many people told me Boise State was so diverse and that I would fit right in. That was not the case at all. When I first met Bobby, I did not expect him to impact my life the way he did. I remember coming in to my first hockey practice for BSU, I had no idea what was going on and no one sat and stopped to get me updated of what to expect. Bobby pulled me to the side and broke down expectations as well as how to have fun on the ice and make the most of my time here. In my head I thought to myself he must be one of the coaches, the way he talked to me and motivated me made me want to go hit the ice and score goals all season. At this time we were strangers, yet Bobby’s heart opened up and made me feel like we where brothers. He had a smile that could literally light up a dark void. After practice that day as I was packing up my gear bag he saw that I had no car to get to and from practice as well as I was still adapting to Idaho. He told me “Hey man, if you ever need anything let me know, and I’ll be there for you.” This interaction was the blue print of our relationship. Having Bobby in my life was very valuable for me. There were times where I wanted to quit and stop school overall or just go back home but he would not let me. The things I missed most was how he would check up on me constantly to see if I was okay and was maneuvering through Idaho well. I was super surprised that he saw all the stuff I faced while being a person of color here in Idaho. 

I constantly think about that night he passed. I keep on going over scenarios in my head that would have made that night different. I keep on wondering if I should have went out with them and been there. But some things are out of my control. As I came up with all these scenarios in my head, I took some blame. I later sat down and thought what sone thong Bobby would want me to do and it was to get my EMT. We talked a lot about me getting it and he had aspirations to help others, so he was down for the hard work to get it to. After his passing I was more driven than ever to actually get my EMT. Following his death that summer I graduated from my EMT class with the idea that it was for Bobby. I live my life everyday with the thought of how life would be different if I still had Skinner here. 

If I could change one thing about this whole situation it would be to check up on him more. He made it seem like he was always okay, and I admired him for it. But deep down we all have our own battles. With Bobby’s heart, mindset, as well as jokes I made it to my senior year at BSU. I could not ask anything more form him as I appreciated every time we spent. I know he is watching over me now and if anything, I am more determined than ever to help Bobby’s life get recognized as well as make impacts to those life’s around me the way Bobby did to mine. 

Lexi

Hi Tricia. I’ve been wanting to send a message for years honestly, I am just finishing up a trip to Costa Rica which really sparked me booking a trip to Southeast Asia which just lead to endless memories of Bobby coming up. We spent hours talking about his trip out that way when he came back. I lost my dad when I was 13 and hearing stories of him is always one of my favorite things. Bobby and I met when he played for Compete Hockey Academy in Coeur d Alene and our friendship always continued. When I moved to Boise, Bobby reached out to me right away and welcomed me with open arms and included me in everything he was involved in. He always brighten any room he walked in and his laugh was contagious. I find myself missing him often especially on this last trip. We always talked about our travels & hockey of course. I’m so thankful he was apart of my life and hope to meet you guys sometime.