Sharing her sorrow. Skai Jackson is still grieving the untimely death of her Jessie costar Cameron Boyce, who died at age 20 earlier this month.
“I’ve been coping. I mean, I just go day by day,” the Bunk’d star, 17, told Us Weekly at the HollyRod Foundation’s DesignCare Gala on Saturday, July 27. “He was like a brother to all of us, all of my castmates. We got to spend five amazing years with him.”
For Jackson, it’s “really important to continue his legacy,” so she is encouraging everyone to donate to the Cameron Boyce Foundation, which his parents started following his death, as well as the Thirst Project.
“That was another organization that he was really close with,” the actress told Us of the non-profit institution that aims to bring clean drinking water to communities all over the world. “So I’m just doing everything that he wanted to do and make sure that his legacy always lives on forever.”
Boyce’s parents confirmed in a statement to Us on July 6 that the actor had passed away in his “sleep due to a seizure which was a result of an ongoing medical condition for which he was being treated.”
The statement continued: “The world is now undoubtedly without one of its brightest lights, but his spirit will live on through the kindness and compassion of all who knew and loved him. We are utterly heartbroken and ask for privacy during this immensely difficult time as we grieve the loss of our precious son and brother.”
Hours after the news of his death, Jackson took to social media to share her pain.
“I don’t even know where to start… I am at a loss for words. I never thought in a million years I would be writing this,” she wrote alongside a series of Instagram photos from the set of the Disney Channel show that they filmed together from 2011 to 2015. “Cam, you were one of a kind. My heart will be forever broken. I am so happy that I got to spend almost everyday with you on set, you gave the best hugs. I wish I would have hugged you tighter when I saw you a couple of months ago. Thank you so much for being the big brother I never had… I am so distraught and I cannot stop crying! I love you so much… fly high 👼🏼 💔😢 Gods best Angel.”
With reporting by Kayley Stumpe
