VF21
- Thread starter Tetsujin
- Start date
Sad to hear this news. This was my “Go to” message board for all things Kings for many years. Only pop in occasionally now as my passion for this team and all things sports has waned in the last couple of years. I lurked for a few years and dove in during the heyday. Had a few posts VF21 didn’t appreciate and was called on the carpet for, but over time she and I managed to resolve those things. She was the most passionate Kings fan I ever saw and the eternal optimist. This board was her baby and she made it feel like home. She will be missed. Rest In Peace Christine.
Oh no... just noticed this thread also. Lost for words! Sometimes we had some disagreements about the team, but still loved the positive energy and enthusiasm from her daily! *insert bouncing fox
Loved reading all the beautiful tributes here from all of you! Sending all the love to her family from the Baltics! Rest in peace Christine!
Loved reading all the beautiful tributes here from all of you! Sending all the love to her family from the Baltics! Rest in peace Christine!
Wow, I don't even know where to begin. When I read the news I was just gutted. VF21 was one of the very first people I interacted with here and over the years she's grown into someone I consider to be a close friend. The news hit me so hard in fact that I've been on a hiatus for awhile. I feel like it's time to try and pull together some thoughts though...
I guess I'll start here: There's a very long maternal strand going through Kings-fandom for me. I inherited my love of baseball from my dad but my love of basketball came entirely from my mom's side of the family. My mom took me to my first Kings game and I was instantly hooked. My grandmother had season tickets right up until the year she passed and she took me to several games over the years, knew all the players, and loved the Kings (and purple) as much as anyone I know. And the one abiding memory I have of my great grandmother is seeing her huddled in her rocking chair at her home in Rocklin, shoved up right in front of her TV because she could barely see and all I ever remember her watching/listening to was Kings basketball. When my great-grandmother turned 90 we even got a nice letter from Rick Adelman celebrating her for coaching girls basketball so very many years ago when the sport must have been in its infant stages.
I'm not sure what it is about basketball or the Kings in particular that attracts so many wonderful women to sports. It can't just be a coincidence that the only professional sports league in this country is for basketball. I could try to formulate some theories but really I don't know and it doesn't matter. I just want to say thank you to all of them but particularly to Christine "VF21" for sharing her passion and love of life and basketball with all of us for all the time that she had. I know for a fact that we're all the better for it. You will be forever missed! Please look up my grandmother JoAnn Kuphaldt and my great grandmother Sally Zaharis up there if you get a chance, because I know you'll have a lot to talk about.
Love always, your friend,
-hrdboild
I guess I'll start here: There's a very long maternal strand going through Kings-fandom for me. I inherited my love of baseball from my dad but my love of basketball came entirely from my mom's side of the family. My mom took me to my first Kings game and I was instantly hooked. My grandmother had season tickets right up until the year she passed and she took me to several games over the years, knew all the players, and loved the Kings (and purple) as much as anyone I know. And the one abiding memory I have of my great grandmother is seeing her huddled in her rocking chair at her home in Rocklin, shoved up right in front of her TV because she could barely see and all I ever remember her watching/listening to was Kings basketball. When my great-grandmother turned 90 we even got a nice letter from Rick Adelman celebrating her for coaching girls basketball so very many years ago when the sport must have been in its infant stages.
I'm not sure what it is about basketball or the Kings in particular that attracts so many wonderful women to sports. It can't just be a coincidence that the only professional sports league in this country is for basketball. I could try to formulate some theories but really I don't know and it doesn't matter. I just want to say thank you to all of them but particularly to Christine "VF21" for sharing her passion and love of life and basketball with all of us for all the time that she had. I know for a fact that we're all the better for it. You will be forever missed! Please look up my grandmother JoAnn Kuphaldt and my great grandmother Sally Zaharis up there if you get a chance, because I know you'll have a lot to talk about.
Love always, your friend,
-hrdboild
Oh, man. I don't come back here too much either (although I never said much when I WAS coming here regularly-- probably a couple hundred posts in 20+ years). Her optimism would be eye-rolling and aggravating to my cynical Kings-fandom heart. But she would always be cordial to me in any of our brief interactions, and she helped make me feel like I belonged here. And sometimes it's the little things like those interactions that go a long way. So when the other Kings forums back then started getting too crass or cliquish to my liking, she helped this forum be the more welcoming and inclusive environment that I was looking for. Godspeed, Christine.
And Glenn, it truly is great to hear from you again. Hope Jeremy is doing OK too.
And Glenn, it truly is great to hear from you again. Hope Jeremy is doing OK too.
No way! 
Ugh. This is heartbreaking.
I'm really, really sorry to hear about her passing. She was such a passionate Kings fan. I haven't been on here lately because I'm just so tired of Kings ineptitude. But this is more than deserving of a comment.
I'll never forget VF. Like most people, I never agreed with her 100% of the time. I once joked that Bogdan's full name was boring because his last name is literally the same as his first name, but with extra letters lol. She proceeded to send me an aggressive message about Balkan culture, even though my GF at the time was Balkan hahaha.
I'll miss you VF.
"I love this team!!!".
Ugh. This is heartbreaking.I'm really, really sorry to hear about her passing. She was such a passionate Kings fan. I haven't been on here lately because I'm just so tired of Kings ineptitude. But this is more than deserving of a comment.
I'll never forget VF. Like most people, I never agreed with her 100% of the time. I once joked that Bogdan's full name was boring because his last name is literally the same as his first name, but with extra letters lol. She proceeded to send me an aggressive message about Balkan culture, even though my GF at the time was Balkan hahaha.
I'll miss you VF.
"I love this team!!!".
Not many of you will remember me, but I was a regular here pretty much now what must be nearly 20 years ago. I always liked to check in at least a few times a year and see whats happening in Kings country. The memories of the good old Kings days, including this board are as vivid as if they occured yesterday. Out of all the people on this board, I think she was the biggest, most devoted fan, period. The Kings ought to pay her a tribute. I’ve had many interactions with her, and she was nothing but nice, even when we disagreed, which speaks to her character. Despite never having met her, she’ll be etched into my memories. Nothing but fond memories, and may she rest in peace.
It certainly feels a little tougher in the threads without that constant ray of sunshine trying her damndest to break through the bleak clouds that are most of our reactions to all things Kings.
To echo Mad D's message, and those of the original Kingsfans.com OGs, this is such sad news and I can't believe I'm just now seeing this.
I owe a lot to Christine. In 2005, I was a 20 year old college student, spending long nights eating Doritos and editing the Chris Webber tribute DVD. This was before YouTube, so I sent Christine 25 DVDs and she mailed them to Kings Fans contributors. Who does that? We had never met in person but she willingly sent out DVDs from a random college kid. Four years later Webber saw the video, sent me an autographed jersey, shoes and invited me to his pre-retirement party. I tell people this was my first viral video before viral videos were a thing. Today, the jersey, DVD, and comments from Kingsfans.com members are proudly hanging next to my Emmy (humble brag, but that's how important the video is to me). None of this wouldn't have happened without her.
It's been an honor meeting fans from this forum in person and I wish I had a chance to give her thanks. If anyone knows her daughter, PLEASE give her my condolences.
I owe a lot to Christine. In 2005, I was a 20 year old college student, spending long nights eating Doritos and editing the Chris Webber tribute DVD. This was before YouTube, so I sent Christine 25 DVDs and she mailed them to Kings Fans contributors. Who does that? We had never met in person but she willingly sent out DVDs from a random college kid. Four years later Webber saw the video, sent me an autographed jersey, shoes and invited me to his pre-retirement party. I tell people this was my first viral video before viral videos were a thing. Today, the jersey, DVD, and comments from Kingsfans.com members are proudly hanging next to my Emmy (humble brag, but that's how important the video is to me). None of this wouldn't have happened without her.
It's been an honor meeting fans from this forum in person and I wish I had a chance to give her thanks. If anyone knows her daughter, PLEASE give her my condolences.
Haven't posted in awhile as I was a regular during the 2008-2013 era while the team was still trying to find a solution to getting a new arena. Once the arena was a done deal, I sort of disappeared but had to sign in just to pay my respects. While I butted heads on occasion with her, the pro's of my interactions with Christine far outweighed the con's.
The one thing I'll remember more than anything was when a regular thread somehow disintegrated into a 2002 game 6 flame war. I wanted to get the thread back on track or "unhijacked" if you will. I realized that I didn't have the necessary clout so I pm'd her and sure enough, she was right there in less than 5 minutes with a post on the thread declaring that things needed to get back on track and that we would stop the game 6 nonsense immediately. And sure enough, the nonsense ended and the thread got back on track.
She truly had the respect and admiration of this board. Until we meet again....
The one thing I'll remember more than anything was when a regular thread somehow disintegrated into a 2002 game 6 flame war. I wanted to get the thread back on track or "unhijacked" if you will. I realized that I didn't have the necessary clout so I pm'd her and sure enough, she was right there in less than 5 minutes with a post on the thread declaring that things needed to get back on track and that we would stop the game 6 nonsense immediately. And sure enough, the nonsense ended and the thread got back on track.
She truly had the respect and admiration of this board. Until we meet again....
Damn this is sad. I check in every once in awhile as this forum was such a big part of my life at one point. I was wondering why I wasn't seeing VF's posts as many others noticed as well. Now I see why. Prayers to her family whom I hope have gotten thru this.
She and I butted heads a number of times. I'd lay out the reasons why I thought the team would not live up to the hype, then she'd come in as she was well known to do, as perhaps the greatest Kings optimist we've had, and tell me why I needed to have more faith/hope.
In the end, the small differences don't matter. I wish she could have seen this team be a success before her passing. She more than deserved another taste of a playoff run. But more than that, what leads me back here to check in isn't my connection with the team but rather looking fondly back on my time here and hoping my children can have a similar connect to a sports team. And VF was a major part of that experience. We all wanted the same thing when it came down to it, a successful team. We were akin to a large family around the dinner table, all Kings fans, all arguing, and at some point VF would put her hand down and say, can't we just root for and support our team!?
She once wished my a happy birthday when I wasn't familiar with that part of the forum and did not see it until years later. If you're reading this from above Christine, sorry I missed your post. Thank you!
RIP.
The Kings family lost a great one.
She and I butted heads a number of times. I'd lay out the reasons why I thought the team would not live up to the hype, then she'd come in as she was well known to do, as perhaps the greatest Kings optimist we've had, and tell me why I needed to have more faith/hope.
In the end, the small differences don't matter. I wish she could have seen this team be a success before her passing. She more than deserved another taste of a playoff run. But more than that, what leads me back here to check in isn't my connection with the team but rather looking fondly back on my time here and hoping my children can have a similar connect to a sports team. And VF was a major part of that experience. We all wanted the same thing when it came down to it, a successful team. We were akin to a large family around the dinner table, all Kings fans, all arguing, and at some point VF would put her hand down and say, can't we just root for and support our team!?
She once wished my a happy birthday when I wasn't familiar with that part of the forum and did not see it until years later. If you're reading this from above Christine, sorry I missed your post. Thank you!
RIP.
The Kings family lost a great one.
