Sometimes It’s Cheer, Sometimes It’s a Tear

I would like to thank Mike Downey for his Dec. 19 column, “Sometimes, the Cheer Goes Out of the Holidays.”

Finally, a writer has shown his emotions regarding the tragic deaths of young athletes. In his column, Downey mentioned the death of 17-year-old Kevin Copeland.

I was a childhood friend of Kevin and I can honestly say that he was one of the nicest boys that I’ve ever met.

JIMMY BLACKMAN, Los Angeles