Shannen Doherty‘s best friend for the past few decades is speaking out after the actress’ tragic death over the weekend.
On Monday, Sarah Michelle Gellar shared several super sweet photos of her and the Charmed alum from over the years, heartbreakingly reflecting in the caption:
“How do you possibly find the right words to sum up 30 years of friendship? I keep reminding myself it only hurts this much because, there was so much love.”
Aw. Such a beautiful way to think of this!
Related: Alyssa Milano Addresses ‘Complicated Relationship’ With Shannen
The Buffy the Vampire Slayer star went on to thank everyone for their “support” during this difficult time, adding:
“Thank you, for all your kind words and support. I love all the messages about how @theshando was important to you. So let’s honor her. More than anything, Shan loves animals, especially dogs.”
The 47-year-old went on to suggest everyone looking to “honor” the Beverly Hills, 90210 star choose to highlight a charity of their choice, concluding:
“In her memory let’s support our favorite animal charities. Whether that’s donating money , stopping by your local shelter and just offering cuddles and walks to animals housed there or even just tagging them in the comments so other people can learn about their work. I know that would make our girl happy (and illicit that deep throaty laugh we all loved)
“
A wonderful idea! As an example, she tagged local animal nonprofit the Lange Foundation in the comments, which saves injured and abandoned pets from overcrowded LA shelters. See the emotional post HERE. And here’s some of the pics she shared in the post and in her IG Story:
![Sarah Michelle Gellar Shares Tribute to Best Friend Shannen Doherty](https://perezhilton.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/sarah-michelle-gellar-tribute-shannen.jpg)
The pair have been friends for decades since meeting in the 1990s through their respective Warner Bros. shows — Buffy and Charmed — but their bond became even stronger during the COVID-19 lockdown when Shannen opened up her home to Sarah and her children, helping to give the kids “adventures” and “freedom” during the challenging time. Sarah reflected in a February episode of the Let’s Be Clear podcast:
“You opened your home to us in COVID in a way that I will for the rest of my life be grateful for. […] I can never repay that because that was such a difficult time and so seeing my kids that happy and giving me a break. People don’t know this, but Shannen sat there sometimes while they were on Zoom school and helped them and we would have blackouts and she would plan adventures.”
Sounds like the Heathers star went above and beyond for them! So special! In February, the Cruel Intentions star also told E! News of their friendship:
“Our relationship has grown because we’ve grown. We’ve had experiences and life is complicated. And we’ve been able to experience it together, so then you grow together.”
As Perezcious readers know, the 53-year-old had been fighting stage 4 breast cancer on and off since 2015. Discussing her pal’s cancer battle in October 2023, Sarah also told Access Hollywood:
“She’s incredible. When they say a warrior, she is a warrior. She lives every day and she’s fighting. There are ups and downs and there are days that are harder than others and there are some days that are easy, but she’s doing great.”
SMG stayed by Shannen’s side through this whole journey, so we cannot imagine how difficult this death must be for her! We are sending her our thoughts as she continues to process this loss. R.I.P.
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[Image via Sarah Michelle Gellar/Instagram]