UTM honors Pat Summitt during ‘Celebration of Life’ service

MARTIN, Tenn. — Thursday night was the final farewell for a true Tennessee legend.

Volunteers from the east to the west honored Pat Summitt, a woman whose legacy lives on.

The “Celebration of Life” service for Coach Summitt was held Thursday night in Knoxville, but her alma mater, the University of Tennessee at Martin, hosted a live stream viewing for the local community to honor her together.

Summitt died two weeks ago after a five-year battle with Alzheimer’s.

UT Martin is where Summitt started her college basketball career and began impacting lives on and off the court.

“The impact that she has had, I don’t think that you can put a value at how much it means to the women’s game to Tennessee,” UTM women’s basketball coach Kevin McMillan said. “We just don’t know how much impact she has had on all our lives. We practice on her court every day, and we don’t take that lightly. We feel like we need to be a certain way, play a certain way because it’s her court.”

During the service, her son spoke of his mother’s big heart.

“I heard three words every single day of my life: ‘I love you.’ Every day,” Tyler Summitt said. “Didn’t mater how busy she was, what she had to do — she took the time to stop and tell me that.”

Those who knew Summitt said she inspired them to be the best version of themselves.

“You’ve got to put your best foot forward, and you’ve got to work hard, and you’ve got to encourage people around you all the time. And she did — she was wonderful at that,” Carol Kirkland said. She worked with Summitt in the UTM Alumni Association.

The service in Martin ended with a reception where pictures and other memorabilia were on display, including the jersey she wore at UTM.

Alumni from UTM are working with the Pat Summitt Foundation to host a golf tournament in Jackson this September to help raise money to find a cure for Alzheimer’s.