December 13, 1994
Fallen basketball player Richard "Spyder" Saunders will never get to participate in graduation ceremonies and receive his diploma, but a degree has been awarded to his mother in his honor.
In a small ceremony in the president's conference room, SF State President Robert A. Corrigan gave Eunice Saunders a posthumous bachelor's degree in memory of her son. Saunder's two aunts, Helen and Susan, flew in with Eunice from Brooklyn, N.Y. and a good family friend, Fred, also sat in on the ceremony.
"It's a mark of respect not only for your son and what he meant to the team, but for the extraordinary citizen he was," Corrigan said. This is only the second posthumous degree Corrigan has awarded since he came to SF State in 1988.
Saunders collapsed and died in the gym on Nov. 16 during basketball practice. He moved here last year from Sonora, Calif. and was improving his skills on SF State's basketball team.
When Corrigan handed the diploma cover to Eunice, she stood up, wiped tears from her eyes and spoke a few words about her son.
"I brought him up the right way, to love people," Eunice said. "I don't have him, but deep down in my heart I'll always love him."
She said her son left a lot of people around the country very happy to have been part of his life. He was a hard worker and accomplished what he wanted in life, she said.
"He's sleeping. He was tired," Eunice said. "How much could he do at 23?"
Eunice talked to her son everyday when he moved to California. "We don't hide anything from each other," she said. The last time she spoke to him was on the Sunday before he died. Then she went down to Florida.
"I was saying beautiful things to everyone about him (in Florida) because they were asking, 'How's Richard?'," Eunice said. "Next thing I knew I got the call that he was dead."
Saunder's aunt Susan talked about the good times she used to spend with him and her family. She said she had spoken to Saunders about a week before he died, and said they usually talked three times a week.
Saunders also sent Susan a letter the week before his death. It was the only letter he ever wrote her. He talked about the basketball team, his high grades in school and reminded her to watch ESPN for highlights of his next two games.
At the bottom of the letter Saunders wrote, "I just want everyone to be proud of me."
Saunders spent a lot of time with his nieces, Kamille and Tara, when he was visited New York. He would drive them to school, ride bikes with them and take them to the park, Susan said.
Saunders called Susan's husband "Dad." The last time Saunders was visiting Brooklyn in August 1993, he and "Dad" went shopping for cars. "They went to all the dealers looking for cars because that was what Spyder wanted," Susan said.
At his funeral, his "Dad" had a special basketball he wanted to place on the coffin. But, because of kidney problems, his blood pressure rose while walking up the aisle and he had to be rushed to the hospital by ambulance.
Kim Wible, university police department chief of police, has been in close contact with the family since Saunder's death. Wible said they bought gifts for all the people who have helped out in the past few weeks.
"These women are incredible," Wible said. "I've never come in contact with people who are so giving."