Lea Michele Honors Naya Rivera On The 1-Year Anniversary Of Her Death With Special ‘Glee’ Photo

'Glee' alum Lea Michele has paid tribute to her late former co-star Naya Rivera, one year after she tragically drowned at the age of 33.

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July 9, 2021 10:10AM EDT
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Naya Rivera poses for a portrait in New YorkNaya Rivera Portrait Session, New York, USA
Cast members, including Heather Morris, from the TV Show "Glee" and friends held hands as they shouted "Say her name - Naya" as they gathered on the Lake Piru boat launch Monday morning just as Ventura County Sheriff's Search and Rescue dive team located a body Monday morning in Lake Piru as the search continued for 33-year-old "Glee" actress Naya Rivera after her 4-year-old son was found alone on a boat she rented last Wednesday. Rivera rented the pontoon boat and had been swimming with her son who was the last one to see her before she went missing. The boy got back into the boat after a swim but his mother did not follow. Lake Piru on Monday Cast members from the show "Glee" and friends gathered Monday morning at the boat launch as Ventura County Sheriff's Search and Rescue dive team located a body Monday morning in Lake Piru as the search continued for actress Naya Rivera after her 4-year-old
Los Feliz, CA - *EXCLUSIVE* - Naya Rivera was last spotted out shopping at Albertson's grocery store with her son Josey Hollis. The Glee star has gone missing at a lake in Southern California. Rivera, 33, vanished from Lake Piru in Ventura County on Wednesday evening after she had rented a boat and was presumed to have gone swimming. Her son was found on the boat hours later sleeping. Ventura County Sheriff's Department will deploy divers and air units this morning as they continue to search for Rivera.Pictured: Naya Rivera, Josey Hollis DorseyBACKGRID USA 3 JULY 2020BACKGRID USA 9 JULY 2020 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.comUK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com*UK Clients - Pictures Containing ChildrenPlease Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
Image Credit: BroadImage/Shutterstock

Lea Michele has shared a throwback snap of the late Naya Rivera on the one year anniversary of her death. The Glee alum took to her Instagram Stories on July 8 to post a photo of Naya performing Funny Girl hit “Don’t Rain on My Parade” during season five of the show. She also added the dove with olive branch emoji to the post, which actually had a deeper meaning than perhaps what meets the eye.

One of the key Glee storylines in season five featured Lea’s character Rachel Berry moving to New York and starring as Fanny Brice in a Broadway revival of Funny Girl. In one episode, Naya‘s character Santana Lopez surprised Rachel by auditioning to be her understudy in the show, performing the hit song which Lea had sung back in season one.

Of course, the new mom isn’t the only Glee star to pay tribute to Naya on the one year anniversary of her death. Heather Morris, who was not only a co-star but a close friend of Naya, shared a heartrending Instagram post that included a photo of Naya smiling. “It hasn’t gotten easier to write a caption,” she began. “You are the brightest star in my eyes Naya Rivera. I’m so grateful GOD LAYED A HAND and brought us together as best friends, mom friends, scene partners, and everything in between. Your legacy lives on in kindness and being ‘that sassy queen’ in my eyes. I love you forever bebe girl.”

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Lea and Naya. Image: BroadImage/Shutterstock

Naya died from drowning in Lake Piru, California on July 8, 2020. She went missing while going for a swim with her now-five-year-old son Josey Hollis Dorsey, whom she shared with ex-husband Ryan Dorsey, 37. While Josey was found safe, his mom was nowhere to be found. Her body was recovered on July 13, 2020 by a rescue team following an extensive five-day search that included professional divers, helicopters, ATV vehicles, boats and ground personnel.

Naya’s mother Yolanda Previtire, and sister Nickayla, also paid tribute to the late actress on July 8 during an emotional segment on Good Morning America. “Sometimes we’re afraid of the sorrow being so heavy that we’re afraid for our own self, ’cause this is hard. There are no words to describe what we’re going through,” Yolanda said. “All we know is we have each other.”