On Wednesday morning, sportswriter Robby Kalland shared on Twitter that Atlanta-based NBA blogger Bo Churney had died by suicide and that Churney’s brother had hoped to spread word to the online NBA community.
Within hours, a fundraising page set up to benefit an Atlanta organization that provides outreach to at-risk LGBT youth in Atlanta had raised more than $5,000 in Churney’s honor.
The news of Churney’s death rocked much of the Twitter NBA world, with dozens of people, from high-profile writers to regular fans, expressing shock and sharing their memories.
https://twitter.com/MichaelFosterSN/status/999327829669175296
So sad to hear of @bochurney passing. Was one of first basketball twitter people i ever followed. Always seemed to have the right take and attitude about everything.
— David Zavac (@DavidZavac) May 23, 2018
https://twitter.com/IanDougherty/status/999311806077136896
The Atlanta Hawks acknowledged Churney — who wrote for a number of publications including HawksHoop, Atlanta’s ESPN TrueHoop affiliate — through both their main account and their PR account.
Our deepest condolences go out to the family, friends and colleagues of @bochurney. He was a very talented writer and will be missed dearly. https://t.co/wvmyhFg10F
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) May 23, 2018
(1/2) Hawks PR is saddened to hear of the passing of @bochurney. His genuine passion and enthusiasm for covering the team came through in his writing and his witty and thoughtful social media posts, and we always enjoyed catching up at Philips Arena.
— Hawks PR (@HawksPR) May 23, 2018
The NBATV show The Starters even displayed a photo of Churney’s Twitter avatar in its studio Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Kalland and fellow writer Jared Dubin set up a fundraising page, with proceeds benefiting Lost N Found Youth, an Atlanta-based non-profit that, per its website, “exists to end homelessness for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer (LGBTQ+) and all sexual minority youth.”
“If you loved him, if you liked him, if you knew him, if you just want to help some kids who need help, donate here,” NBA writer and Hardwood Paroxysm founder Matt Moore wrote on Twitter while sharing a link to the page.
For @bochurney:
In his honor, there’s a fund for at-risk LGBTQ kids in Atlanta at @LostNFoundYouth
If you loved him, if you liked him, if you knew him, if you just want to help some kids who need help, donate here:https://t.co/Ul0pU27lao
We already miss you so much, Bo.
— Hardwood Paroxysm (@HPbasketball) May 23, 2018
As of 7 p.m. ET on Wednesday, the page had raised $5,132, a figure that was rising by the minute. You can donate right here.