Naya Rivera's ex-husband makes an emotional tribute following her tragic death
Naya Rivera's ex-husband Ryan Dorsey has broken his silence on the Glee star's death, almost two weeks after her body was found was found in Lake Piru, California. Dorsey, who is the father of Rivera's four-year-old son, Josey, took to Instagram to share a heartbreaking tribute to his former wife.
"This is so unfair...there's not enough words to express the hole left in everyone's hearts," wrote the actor. "I can't believe this is life now. I don't know if I'll ever believe it."
Naya Rivera and Ryan Dorsey got married in 2014, but later divorced in 2018 and shared custody of their son. Prior to the actress' body being discovered in the waters, he had joined members of his ex-partner's family at the lakeside, where they were seen wading in the waters and looking visibly emotional.
Continuing his poignant post, Dorsey wrote: "Life just isn't fair. I don't know what to say...I'm thankful for our times and our journey that brought us together and gave us the sweetest and kindest smart little boy we could ever hope for."
Rivera's ex-husband described how he will cherish all the photos and videos he has of her, so that Josey will have them forever. "[He will] know his momma loved him more than life, and how much fun we had together as he was growing up," wrote Dorsey.
A post shared by dorseyryan (@dorseyryan) on Jul 25, 2020 at 1:31pm PDT
"We miss you. We will always love you," he signed off. The photograph he shared alongside his touching post was one of Naya Rivera cuddling the pair's son, with the backdrop of a sunset behind.
The alarm was first raised about the 33-year-old's disappearance on Wednesday 8 July, when Josey was found alone and asleep in a drifting boat. She had rented the boat for the afternoon with her young son, where they both got out and swam - but only Josey, who was wearing his life jacket when he was discovered in the vessel, returned. The other, adult-sized life jacket was found unused in the boat along with the child. Rivera's body was found six days later in a north-eastern portion of the lake near the surface of the water.
In a press conference following the confirmation of Rivera's dwath, Sheriff Bill Ayub said that, while none of the details could yet be confirmed, officers believed she spent her final moments ensuring the safety of her son.
"It would be speculation to say at this point, [but] there are a lot of currents on the lake that appear particularly in the afternoon," said the Sheriff. "We believe it was mid-afternoon when she disappeared, the idea perhaps being that the boat started drifting - it was unanchored - and that she mustered enough energy to get her son back on to the boat, but not enough to save herself."
Alongside numerous tributes from fellow Glee actors and other celebrities, Naya Rivera's family have also made an emotional public statement in memory of their daughter and sister. Breaking their silence on the tragedy, the family - parents Yolanda and George Rivera, brother Mychal Rivera, and her sister Nickayla Rivera - said: "We are so grateful for the outpouring of love and prayers for Naya, Josey, and our family over the past week.
"While we grieve the loss of our beautiful legend, we are blessed to honour her everlasting legacy and magnetic spirit," the statement, shared with Deadline, said. "Naya was an amazing talent but was an even greater person, mother, daughter, and sister."
Our thoughts are with Naya Rivera's friends and families at this difficult time.
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