What you need to know
Kevin Smith is mourning the death of his mother, Grace.
On Nov. 30, the 55-year-old executive director shared a photo of himself with his mother in her hospital room, revealing that he had flown to Florida a few days earlier for an “unplanned emergency trip to see my mother who was suddenly on the brink of death.”
Smith added in a Thanksgiving weekend update that Grace “boiled back from the brink and bounced back.”
However, on Tuesday, December 2, he announced that his mother had passed away the night before. She would have turned 80 at the end of December.
“55 years of unconditional love came due on December 1st, but the high price was that I had to watch the strongest person I’ve ever known – the person I love most in the world – walk off stage after spending a lifetime setting the stage for her children. My mom is no more,” Smith wrote in an Instagram caption, sharing a gallery of family photos.
Kevin Smith/Instagram
The filmmaker called his mother “the first person I ever loved,” and praised her for having “a strong heart who tended to put others first.”
Smith was raised by Grace and her father Don, along with her brothers Donald Jr. and Virginia. Don Sr. died of a heart attack in 2003 at the age of 67.
“She was a lioness who fiercely defended her pride and lived for her children,” he added of his mother. “So there was never a day in my life when I didn’t know deep down in my bones that I was valued as a human being, cherished since childhood, and loved beyond all reason. My mother made me feel important to my family, to the world, and especially to her.”
Kevin Smith/Instagram
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The Chasing Amy director said his mother was his “biggest fan” and told fans, “If you like me and anything I’ve ever made, she was the blueprint.”
“While I will miss her the rest of my days, I also know how lucky I am to have spent so much time with my mom,” Smith wrote, adding that he would be canceling several upcoming events and appearances “as I plan to grieve Grace for a while.”
Smith, who shares daughter Harley Quinn Smith with wife Jennifer Schwalbach, concluded his eulogy by thanking “my mom for creating me and taking me on the journey of a lifetime.”
