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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Seamus Duff

Glee star Naya Rivera's son and ex 'doing well' three years after her tragic death

The family of Glee star Naya Rivera are said to be 'doing well' following her shock death three years ago.

The American actress was just 33-years-old when she went missing on 8 July 2020 in Lake Piru - a reservoir located in Los Padres National Forest and Topatopa Mountains in Ventura County, California - and her then-four-year-old son Josey was found alone in a boat on the water.

Five days later, tragic Naya's body was recovered from the water and a coroner later ruled that the death was an accidental drowning.

Josey, who is now seven, and his father, 39-year-old actor Ryan Dorsey are said to be "doing well" according to a source who gave an update to People on the anniversary of Naya's death.

Naya Rivera tragically died in 2020 leaving behind her ex-husband Ryan Dorsey and their son Josey (ryandorsey/Instagram)

The source said: “They are surrounded by family, including Naya’s sister and Ryan’s parents.

“Everyone has always made it a priority to make Josey’s life as happy as possible. It took them all a long time to find a new normal after Naya’s death. They are all doing a great job though.”

The insider continued: “Ryan is truly the best dad. Josey is the sweetest boy. He is very smart too.

"Their home is filled with pictures of him with Naya. They talk about Naya every day. They say good night to her in the evening. They are keeping all the memories of her alive.”

Ryan and Josey are keeping Naya's memory alive every day in their house (ryandorsey/Instagram)

Naya and Ryan dated briefly in 2010 before reconciling in 2014 and they married on 19 July that year.

The pair welcomed their son in September 2015, however the relationship between Naya and Ryan faltered in 2017 and the pair ultimately divorced in 2018.

Ryan recently explained the sweet way Josey commemorated his late mother during mother’s day celebrations earlier this year.

Taking to Instagram at the time, the actor wrote: “@joseydorsey did a Mother's Day butterfly release for Mama with Grandma and Grammy (&Bess).

“Afterwards he held his little elf to the sky with a smile and said: 'Happy Mother's Day in Heaven, Mommy’.”

He added: “His spirit is incredible… Hug’em if ya got’em.”

Naya and Ryan married in 2014 but divorced in 2018 (WireImage)
Josey continues to celebrate his mother's life in the years since her death (Ryan Dorsey/Instagram)

Ryan shared a selection of images of Josey, joined by his grandmother, as he released butterflies into the wild in a public forest.

Meanwhile, Ryan also recently opened up about the difficulties dealing with grief has on him and Josey when other kids learn bout Ryan’s acting career - and inevitably the details of Naya’s death.

He told E! News: “A lot of the kids find out what his dad does for work. They'll also find out about his mom, which is always something that's tough to navigate.

“It's always a reminder of the obvious. Something that's never going to change is what happened and him having to deal with it daily.

“As he crosses these milestones as a kid growing up, kids talk about their moms at school and dealing with his situation is very unique.”

He also went on to explain how he looks forward to sharing Naya’s television and film work with Josey as he grows older.

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