UPS shooting victim Benson Louie was beloved volleyball coach The 50-year-old San Francisco resident was one of three people killed Wednesday when a fellow UPS employee opened fire at a company distribution center on Potrero Hill in San Francisco. The gunman, Jimmy Lam, 38,…
Benson Louie had a passion for volleyball. It took him to gyms on the other side of the world.
The 50-year-old San Francisco resident was one of three people killed Wednesday when a fellow UPS employee opened fire at a company distribution center on Potrero Hill in San Francisco. Louie had a wife and two daughters, friends said.
The gunman, Jimmy Lam, 38, killed himself when confronted by police, authorities said.
Larry Zhao, who lives in Brooklyn, N.Y., met Louie four years ago through the Chinese American Sports and Community Service Association, a nonprofit organization in New York that engages Chinese Americans in sports competitions and activities.
Louie was a coach and a guide to the young men he trained in volleyball, Zhao said.
“He was the leader, ” Zhao said. “He would tell us how to play, how to win the game. He knows. He knows volleyball.”
Zhao added, “He was my best friend. He’s very, very nice. He’s very friendly.”
Louie traveled with a team of nine players to a competition in China in April. He was looking forward to another tournament on June 25, this one in Brooklyn, said another member of the Chinese American sports group, Joyce Yee.
“He was a very good coach, ” Yee said. “A very nice guy.”
On Facebook, volleyball players and other friends remembered him as “Uncle Louie, ” who was known to be an outspoken, animated and determined player and coach.
One of his former players wrote on Facebook, “I’ll never forget your crazy defense, you standing on the sidelines with your arms crossed shaking your head at me and best of all, your stance on the volleyball court.”
The people who take part in volleyball competitions are “like family, ” Zhao said. Louie’s death was hard for them to accept.
“I can’ t believe it, ” Zhao said, his voice quivering. “If you ask him anything and he can do it, he will do it.”
Sarah Ravani is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: sravani@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @SarRavani
