SEATTLE — The weather is as thick as the irony while a tall man ambles along the Green River. Here is a man, once cheered by thousands, strolling alone in the mist and wind.
The Reign Man now likes to walk in the rain.
“I think it’s just peaceful out here for me, especially early in the morning, a day like today is storming outside,” he said. “It’s become part of my diet every day you’ve been doing it, rain or shine, rain or shine, 365 all year long.”
Shawn Kemp is now 56 years old and is a couple of years removed from a shocking incident outside the Tacoma Mall, after he tracked down a couple of men accused of stealing his personal items. Kemp suggested he was acting in self-defense when he fired a gun at the two men, with lengthy criminal histories, who are now behind bars on other charges.
“Once that gun is, once you pull that trigger of that gun, everything else changes in your life,” he now acknowledges. “When you go through a situation like that, and now it becomes criminal, it’s a gut check.”
He now calls that moment a “terrible day” that frightened his wife and kids and made him introspective about his physical and mental health.
“It was upsetting, very upsetting, very upsetting,” he said.
“We’re putting everything together now for the foundation, and it should be up and running here in the next several months, but I’m looking forward to it because I believe it’s true, truly a challenge for me to get back to the public and do some positivity things, but also change some lives and change some spirit and people inside their bodies well,” said Kemp.
His former teammate, Kendall Gill, has talked about his struggles with mental health while he was in Seattle. Vin Baker, who was traded to Seattle for Kemp, has openly discussed his past difficulties with alcohol and depression.
Baker has been counseling Kemp and has opened a clinic in Milwaukee to help others. Kemp says his goal is to do the same, and he has plans to speak to youth groups about identifying mental health issues earlier.
“I just don’t think it’s a very manly thing to do. I think that us men have built to be so strong inside that we’re not able to sometimes talk about our feelings. I can tell you this much: when you do open up about your feelings and what you see and what you want to become and things of that nature, it makes you a stronger individual, and I’ve gone through it with myself,” said Kemp.
It’s something he’s thought a lot about, he says, on those lonely strolls on the Green River trail.
“I would say that at 56 years old I’m truly a lot wiser, a lot smarter, but I’m still willing to work and still willing to serve the public in a positive way,” adds Kemp. “A lot of walking, a lot of thinking. Your health is your wealth.”
***You can listen to Shawn’s full interview on “Inside the Arena” with KOMO Sports Director Niko Tamurian and KOMO Senior Reporter Chris Daniels
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