For Shad Gaspard, his wife Siliana and his son Areya. Lance Archer said it best: “Now your son has countless ‘fathers’ in your brothers from this Biz. We will protect him for you as you watch down on us all.”
About a day after it was reported that Shad Gaspard went missing, I thought about something somebody (maybe my mother) shared with me once when dealing with a loss: look for a cardinal. If you’re a person of spirituality, or maybe just an admirer of life’s funny circumstances, the sighting of cardinal signifies that a loved one is sending you a message from the other side. Thinking about Shad in this light didn’t seem totally fathomable, greatly in part to the fact that I barely knew the man, but also to the hope that he was still with us. Little did I know of the love that Shad Gaspard showed to everyone.
Shad, by even the smallest level, was the first person to make me feel a part of the wrestling business. A good deal of the time my critical mind gets the better of me and I envision myself on the outside looking in, but the kindness of Shad Gaspard immediately made me feel like I was 30 years in with an established newsletter to my name.
In December of 2018, just wrote a small something on his Pinfall TV pilot making The Black List – Shad found me on Instagram and shouted me out for the piece. I sent him a DM thanking him for the nod and we began messaging. Nothing special or super significant, but from someone who just started writing in April of that year, the hat tip meant a lot. I figure why not ask for an interview and see where it leads.
“If you’re ever interested in doing an interview I’d love to talk to you about your work with the script and such? Would definitely be sweet to learn about that transition from WWE to Hollywood and your inspirations.”
“Most definitely, let’s try to schedule something after the new year,” Shad responded.
But due to Shad’s busy schedule and my tendency to alleviate anxiety by procrastination, it didn’t happen at the turn of 2019. However, something that was coming happened to be WrestleMania 35 in New York City, The Brooklyn Beast’s backyard. It so happened that I was set to have a lengthy weekend in The Big Apple. Me and NYC was akin to Mary Tyler Moore heading into Minneapolis, but I was a helluva lot more clueless. The city’s grid layout lent to my benefit, but I was totally shooting from the hip as to making my way through the hustle and bustle. My first order of business was WaleMania V at Sony Hall. Now I’m a fringe hip-hop enthusiast, but if I’m being forthright, my knowledge of the genre is closer the level of Mary Tyler Moore than say, Nelson George (although Wu-Tang, Jurassic 5, Luda & Gang Starr get most of my plays), but I’m always game for a learning experience.
Thanks to colleagues Andreas Hale and Kel Dansby, I felt right at home and was able to get the full effect of WaleMania by taking in the experience and seeing the eclectic mix of rap artists and wrestling stars. One of those stars, sure enough, was Shad. The man was as massive as they come, but when I introduced myself he made me feel like we were long time friends. We embraced and planned ahead to do a chat during WrestleCon at some point over the weekend.
Between running back from Jersey and covering other shows, plus literally walking everywhere (oh and the anxiety kicking in) I never got to WrestleCon. I shot Shad a message after the weekend finished:
“Nice to run into you on Thursday dude! I never got to WrestleCon like I planned (I had to cover MLW in Queens on Friday and then JR’s show on Sat) but it looked like you guys had a blast (that video with you and MVP was so cool too!) WaleMania was wild (I bro-hugged Westside Gunn haha). Let’s keep in touch man!”
Shad, once again, made me feel a part of the weekend.
“Bro is awesome running into you, was hoping that you would come to WrestleCon. Let’s definitely keep in touch.”
And we did. Anything I’d see of him that was newsworthy, I would post. In turn, he’d share with me anything that was going on in his career. He’d also just like random pics on my Instagram. Just to that level, it was crazy how much the man cared.
That June, further news came out about Pinfall and I messaged him. Then, in a move I’ll never forget, Shad sent me the following reply:
“What’s that bro, actually if you want to review the script, I can send it to you. Dave Meltzer and a couple of other guys are reading it right now as well and they’re going to do articles about it.”
To think that he’d include just some Joe Schmo who’s barely had a sip of coffee, let alone a cup, in the wrestling world, was tremendously flattering. Sure enough, the pilot was in my inbox along with “I don’t want to influence your opinions or anything- whatever way you feel about it, I’ll accept.” The guy was that open. What you saw with Shad is absolutely what you got. I read it and I reviewed it.
We kept correspondence, but that interview never came to be. Our final exchange came in January of this year, during his birthday:
“Happy bday man! Holy smokes you look exactly like your dad!!”
“Thank you bro, I’m so sorry I keep forgetting we have to do [an] interview LOL. You know me I just got swamped busy.”
“Lol no worries at all my dude! We’ll figure it out at some point!” I said.
Very early last Wednesday morning, I was walking to work (I’m talking before 6 AM early) and it was the final morning that people wouldn’t know if Shad was still with us. My mind was certainly on him, but it wasn’t on what I saw in a tree to the right of me: a bright red cardinal. Both love and concern washed over me. Hours later we all got word that Shad’s body was found.
Giving your life up for someone is always something I’d like to think I’d do if it ever comes down to it. I cannot tell you the amount of scrupulosity that runs through my head considering such a circumstance, one that may never actually happen, but it happened to Shad Gaspard. And it happened to one of the two most important people in his life, his son, Aryeh. Shad answered that bell. In the following days, anybody that was affected by Shad throughout their lives and careers had an answer for the through and through hero and it happened in so many ways. Colleagues shared stories, fans shared their love and both shared their support in donations big and small.
Let’s all continue to have an answer for Shad Gaspard.
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