Zach Iams' parents were manufacturing a memory, one that a 10-year-old boy could hold for the rest of his life.
They wanted him to be able to reference it in the good and bad days ahead, when Zach would be without his father.
More than two years later, the son is a witness to his parents' success.
"It's probably the greatest night of my life," said Zach, whose sensitivity and maturity belie his 13 years. "It was really fun to do with my dad. Since he died shortly after that, it was like he went out with a bang."
Kevin Iams was a 42-year-old dedicated father and husband, a successful Sacramento employment law attorney, when his lung cancer took a turn for the worse. He didn't want his son to remember the chemotherapy and caregivers, the wheelchair and radiation. Kevin wanted a memory that would bring a smile to Zach's face.
After years of being a season ticket holder with the Kings, Kevin was no longer able to attend games comfortably. Yet he longed to go to one more game, scream one more time for the home team.
When word reached Maloof Sports and Entertainment's front office about a loyal customer who had been given one month to live, several executives stepped up.
And what followed was chronicled in a segment of the book called "Chicken Soup for the Soul: Inside Basketball," released in February.
"That's the neat thing about sports and entertainment – a night of memories can last a lifetime," said Kings spokesman Troy Hanson. "I still get a little choked up thinking about it."
Zach and his mother, Chris, returned to Arco Arena earlier this month as the Kings neared the end of their season. They walked the same hallways where that memory was created.
Zach held onto the hat he had signed by every Kings player during a special meet-and-greet following the game he attended with his dad on Nov. 15, 2006. To ice the cake, the home team beat the Memphis Grizzlies, 115-111.
"That night overall, Kevin was just completely overwhelmed and just happy," Chris Iams said. "He was ecstatic to be at a game. His energy level on a typical day wasn't very high, and that night we talked forever about the game and the experience at the kitchen table."
In the two days that followed, Kevin bragged from his Davis home to friends about the experience, about the gift bags and floor seats, the meet-and-greet and VIP treatment.
On the third day, Kevin died.
"Now, I look back at it, and it's amazing that he was even at that game," Chris Iams said. "That night was really special to him to create a memory for Zach. He knew that. So truly I think a lot of that night was it created a great memory for me, but definitely for Zach."
And now their story is being told in a heartwarming book, which includes 101 basketball-related stories from players, coaches and fans. The Kings are selling the book inside their team store and online at www.kings.com for $16. The proceeds from those sales go to a college fund for Zach Iams.
"That's one of the main memories I will keep about my dad," Zach said. "We kept making jokes throughout the game, saying, 'How did this happen to us? We're VIPs.' When I think of him, I think of him laughing, that's what he loved to do the most."
Call The Bee's Melody Gutierrez, (916) 326-5521.
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