‘She made you feel protected’: Glee’s Chris Colfer writes moving tribute to co-star Naya Rivera

Actor wrote essay about Rivera, who died by drowning in July

Glee star Chris Colfer has penned an emotional tribute to his late co-star Naya Rivera.

The actor, who played Kurt Hummel on the musical series from 2009 to 2015, remembered Rivera one week after her body was found in Lake Piru, California.

Writing for Variety, Colfer described losing Rivera as a “nightmare”, saying: “I’m not sure anyone on Earth could give Naya Rivera the tribute she deserves.

“When Naya sang, you could feel her soul resonating through your own… Naya didn’t just sing a song. She brought it to life. And with every note, she exposed the old sage living inside her young body.”

Colfer continued: “Naya could defuse a bomb with a witty remark… On particularly rough days of filming, you might find her outside enjoying a cigarette in her bright red cheerleading uniform. She would raise an invisible glass and say, ‘To being role models!’ or ‘City of dreams, huh?’

“Naya leaves behind a void that only Naya herself could fill. Her loss is a tragic reminder to celebrate every moment we possibly can with the people we love because the only thing we know for certain about life is how fragile it can be.”

Rivera went missing on 8 July after renting a pontoon boat at Lake Piru, about 50 miles northwest of Los Angeles, with her four-year-old son, Josey. Reports by local authorities found that the 33-year-old died by drowning.

Speaking about Rivera and her son, Colfer wrote: “For as long as I’ve known Naya, the thing she wanted most in life was to be a mother... When her son Josey was born in 2015, it was like a missing piece of Naya had finally arrived.

“Being a mom was perhaps Naya’s greatest talent of all, and as her final moments proved, Naya was an extraordinary mother until the very end.”