How Jason Hart used a childhood tragedy to lead a joyful life

When Kentucky assistant coach Jason Hart was 15 years old, his best friend, Craden, was shot and killed.

It was a life-changing moment for Hart, now 46, who lost the person he was closest to growing up for no particular reason. That kind of grief can alter every part of a person’s life and the trajectory of their future. That’s what it did for Hart, but he used the childhood tragedy as an opportunity to embrace life, knowing how quickly it all can be taken away, which is what he does to this day.

To honor the young man he lost over 30 years ago, Hart’s Instagram handle is @craden71 — an homage to his best friend and the neighborhood they grew up in.

“Craden was my best friend,” Hart recently said on the Sources Say podcast. “I lived on 70th Street, he lived on 71st. When I was 15 years old he got gunned down. I was at a basketball game. He had just put my dog up and was walking back to my house. So I’m on 70th Street, he lives on 71st, and when he got through the alley in broad daylight he was gunned down. So that’s what Craden71 stands for. His street and his name.”

Hart still uses the @craden71 handle as a way to immortalize his late best friend. But it’s also a way to keep himself grounded. It could have been him walking down that alley, not Craden. Knowing that has fueled Hart to lead a joyful life.

“A reminder that I’m blessed,” Hart said when asked why keeping Craden’s name close to him is so important. “I could have been walking through that alley with him. We did that walk probably a gazillion times. God chose me for a reason and I rarely have a bad day, cause when you lose your best friend, you put life into perspective very early. I was 15 years old. It’s just a reminder. My youngest son, his middle name is Craden. That’s how life went for me and I always want to let him know that we’re still together.”

Hart says his best trait as a person is his ability to make people laugh or bring them some sense of enlightenment. It all stems from what happened back in Inglewood, California over three decades ago.

“I make people laugh,” Hart said. “I think if you asked everyone, from my wife to my mom to this new coaching staff who is getting to know me, I think I have the ability to make people laugh and bring joy to the room. In life, it’s pressure. I’m not living life like that because Craden died. You’ll never catch me down, crying over anything. I cried in 1993 when my best friend was killed. I’m gonna bring joy to the room regardless of the situation.”

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