ForMatt Mauserand his three children, every day sincelosing wife and mother Christina Mauserin the tragic helicopter crash that killed her, Kobe and Gigi Bryant and six others, is a challenge. But Wednesday, the second anniversary of the accident, is especially tough.
The musiciantells PEOPLE he planned a fun- and love-filled day in southern California on Wednesday for his family: kids Penny, 13, Thomas, 11, and Ivy, 5. That includes a one-day break from their very busy school, work and activity schedules.
“I kept the kids home from school today,” says Mauser, 51. “We slept in. I’m making bacon and eggs and pancakes. And then we’re gonna go have a fun day. I am taking them to go-kart racing tracks. We’re gonna go race cars.
He adds with a laugh, “It’s probably not what the schools want to hear.”
Mauser says he and his kids talk about Christina every day, at any time anyone wants or needs to.
From left: Penny, Matt, Ivy and Thomas Mauser.Jonny Marlow
“Even more so now because they’re more developed. They’re very bright,” says Mauser. “My daughter is extremely bright. My son is extremely aware and even the little one now, they’re all very communicative and very aware of the circumstances that surround their lives.
“So yes we talk about it and it’s hard,” he continues. “I think they feel comfortable enough to say when I maybe say something that hurts their feelings. Like I said, ‘I miss my wife.’ And my son said, ‘Well, don’t forget she’s my mom, too.’ And thought ‘Wow. Absolutely.’ You know, you learn to apologize a lot.”
Mauser, the frontman ofTijuana DogsandSinatra Big Band, says the family has also recently celebrated their own wins with regard to school, sports and his music career.
“As far as music goes, the kids are fantastic at music,” Mauser continues. “I just had abig show at Cerritos Center for the Performing Artslast Friday and Penny got up there and absolutely brought the house down. I mean, it was a sold-out show. She came out and did ‘These Boots are Made for Walking.’ … And so she absolutely brought the place to the ground and then we did a song called ‘Something Stupid.’ And she just nailed it. She’s got a beautiful singing voice. So the crowd was just, you know, blown away. It was a great, great show.”
“People are loving the shows,” Mauser says of his performances with Sinatra Big Band and Tijuana Dogs. “We bring an element of hope which is really good because everybody’s had a rough time. I don’t know if anybody can compare to us. But others have lost and suffered loss. Ours was a little more public than most, but people can relate to the fact that life goes on, as painful as it is. You gotta try to find joy, you know?”
From left: Penny, Matt, Ivy, Thomas, Christina.courtesy Matt Mauser
Mauser is also busy with fundraising and providing student-athlete scholarships via theChristina Mauser Foundationwhich he started in his late wife’s honor.
“We just announced that we’re releasing four new scholarships,” he says. “And we’re going to do scholarships for Christina’s alma mater, [her] high school, one for the state of California, one for the country and then we’re gonna do one for a Hispanic [student] as well, because I was a Spanish teacher.“Any students interested can visitRose Bowl Instituteor theChristina Mauser Foundationto apply.
“The scholarship recipients will be announced in March,” says Mauser. “And then we’ll do a presentation sometime in the spring. We’re going to hopefully do a big fundraiser for Christina, get the bands out there, have a live auction and maybe silent auction and some testimonials and present the scholarships to the kids.”
source: people.com
