Eric Dane’s widow Rebecca Gayheart took to Instagram to wish her eldest daughter a happy 16th birthday following the Grey’s Anatomy star’s death.
“Happy Sweet 16 to the sweetest girl. Mommy loves you unconditionally and to the moon and back forever 💖💖💖💖,” she wrote above a throwback photo of Billy as a child.
In the photo, Dane’s daughter was all smiles, a large pink flower in her hair and wearing a denim jumper dress. She also clutched a pink ice cream cone.
Another photo shoot showed Billy spending time with various family members, including Gayheart, Dane and Billy’s sister Georgia, to the soundtrack of Fleetwood Mac’s Landslide.
In a repost to their Instagram Stories, Billy and Georgia were all smiles while riding in a pink and purple child-sized Jeep. The repost read, “Happy Birthday Billy,” and included the hashtag “Thisisixteen.”
Just days after the “Euphoria” actor’s death, the Nosema model dedicated her birthday to her daughter.
Dane passed away on February 19th at the age of 53 after a battle with ALS.
“It is with heavy hearts that we share that Eric Dane passed away on Thursday afternoon after a courageous battle with ALS,” the family told Page Six in a statement at the time.
“Through his battle with ALS, Eric has become a passionate advocate for awareness and research, determined to make a difference for others facing the same battle.”
A death certificate obtained by People magazine on Monday revealed that he died of respiratory failure with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis as the underlying cause.
Dane and Gayheart called off their divorce in March, but then revealed in April 2024 that Dane had been diagnosed with a serious illness. The couple married in 2004 and welcomed 14-year-olds Billy and Georgia.
Although the two remained married, Dane dated both Priya Jayne and Janelle Shirtcliffe, who were both battling ALS, while the “Jawbreaker” actress was said to be in a relationship with Peter Morton.
Last November, Gayheart revealed why she withdrew her divorce application in 2018 amid her battle with ALS.
She said in an interview on the Broad Ideas podcast that by doing so, she teaches her daughters to show up for their families at “the worst possible times.”
“We tell our daughters, ‘We’re going to show up for people no matter what. He’s our family. He’s your father,'” Gayheart said of her daughters in a podcast interview.
She also said that during Dane’s illness, she aimed to make her daughters feel “valued” even though things were “hard, sad and bad” for the family.
Meanwhile, after his death, Dane spoke his last words to his daughters in a heartbreaking episode of Netflix’s Famous Last Words, which was recorded before his death.
“I tried. I stumbled sometimes, but I tried,” he said. “Overall it was a lot of fun, wasn’t it?”
