Kimberly Van Der Beek is paying homage to the life of her beloved late husband, James Van Der Beek. Indeed, the wife of 15 years shared a series of unseen photos and videos of the "Dawson's Creek" alum, who passed away on February 11th following a battle with colorectal cancer. It would have been his 49th birthday.
"Would be your 49th birthday today," Kimberly wrote over a picture of her and James on Instagram Stories on March 8th. "And I'm missing you tremendously."
Kimberley, a mother to six children - Olivia, 15, Joshua, 13, Annabel, 12, Emilia, 9, Gwendolyn, 7, and Jeremiah, 4 - also shared a video of the "Varsity Blues" actor from just a year and a half ago. "Doing what he loved. Working this land," she wrote.
The mom of six went on to share a plethora of never-before-seen family memories with James and their little ones. "Always dancing with his kids," she wrote over a video of James getting groovy with his youngest son. Later, she wrote "Taking them on adventures" over another snap of the "The Rules of Attraction" actor with two of his toddlers.
"You are the light of our lives," Kimberly wrote over another family photo. "Your love. Beauty. Presence. Tenderness. Protection. Safety. Creativity. Singing." She added, "I'm so grateful for the time."
Kimberly, who wed James in 2010, also opened up about her grief following James' tragic death. "Baby, you were the best humanity had to offer," she wrote over a photo of their entire family. "This is a loss I don't know how to process. I will love you forever."
Kimberly's emotional tribute comes weeks after sharing that she and James renewed their vows in a bedside service days before he died. "We decided two days beforehand and our friends got us new rings, filled our bedroom with flowers and candles, and we renewed our vows from bed," Kimberly told People in an interview published on February 17th, noting that the ceremony was "simple and beautiful and moving."
The ceremony came six months after James - who went public with his colorectal cancer diagnosis in 2024 - marked 15 years of marriage with Kimberly. "15 years ago today, this woman agreed to be my bride. @vanderkimberly you are the most extraordinary human I've ever met," he captioned an August 1st Instagram post featuring a selfie of him and his wife. "One day I'll tell the story of what you've endured these last two years and how you've shown up, time and time and time again. You have not only saved my life... you've shown me what it is to live."
