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James Van Der Beek’s widow has posted an emotional tribute to her late husband, three months after the actor’s death.<\/p>\n
The Dawson’s Creek star died of bowel cancer at the age of 48<\/a> in February, and Kimberly Van Der Beek wrote on Instagram<\/a> on Tuesday that the “reality is settling in”.<\/p>\n She described the “outpouring of support” she has received as “tremendous”.<\/p>\n “Yesterday was three months since we lost @vanderjames,” she said, while also sharing a carousel of family photographs. “To say I’m heartbroken is a severe understatement. Words just don’t capture what grief is. The comforts of shock have worn off. The reality is settling in… and I miss him.”<\/p>\n The actor starred in shows and films in the 1990s and 2000s including Dawson’s Creek and Varsity Blues<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n She continued: “We all miss him. Yet, there is a different kind of magic in the air. I feel him. I know him more deeply.<\/p>\n “My conscious connection to God has deepened. The veils of the universe have thinned. And I trust that this is the path me and my family have always been intended to walk.”<\/p>\n James Van Der Beek – who rose to fame playing aspiring film-maker Dawson Leery in Dawson’s Creek<\/a> from 1998 until 2003 – had six children with Kimberly.<\/p>\n In the months before his death, he shared how cash-strapped the cancer treatments had left him and his family.<\/p>\n The cost of his medical treatments were so financially draining that his wife had to ask for donations<\/a> so they would not lose their home.<\/p>\n The late star said he had been paid “almost nothing” for Dawson’s Creek as a young actor, and that his contract had not included residual payments for repeats.<\/p>\n He publicly auctioned items he’d saved for decades from the roles that defined his career: a tartan buttoned shirt he wore in the first episode of Dawson’s Creek, a necklace he gave to Katie Holmes’ character on the teen drama series, and sports shoes he wore in 1999 film Varsity Blues.<\/p>\n “The outpouring of support has been tremendous,” Kimberly reflected on Tuesday.<\/p>\n “It’s held our family in the most beautiful of ways. You all went absolutely above and beyond anything I could have ever expected in supporting us and honouring James.<\/p>\n “I am deeply grateful. There is so much more to share here. And in time – I will.”<\/p>\n In February, following the news of his death, Van Der Beek’s Dawson’s Creek co-stars led the tributes<\/a>.<\/p>\n In a hand-written statement posted on Instagram, Holmes – who played Dawson’s best friend Joey Potter on the show – remembered Van Der Beek for his “bravery, compassion, selflessness and strength”, as well as his “appreciation for life”.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n‘Deeply grateful’<\/h2>\n