Actor John Travolta has paid tribute to his son Jett Travolta on the day that would have been his 30th birthday had he not tragically passed away in 2009.
The 68-year-old Grease actor took to social media to post his tribute to Jett, who was just 16 years old when he died while on vacation in the Bahamas.
Jett had been the eldest son of John Travolta and his wife, fellow actor Kelly Preston. The couple had two other children together, Ella Bleu and Benjamin. Preston sadly passed away in 2020.
Travolta took to Instagram, where he posted a sweet black and white picture of himself and Jett with beaming smiles.
For the caption, the Hollywood star wrote: “My dearest Jetty, I miss you more than words can say. I think about you everyday. Happy Birthday. Love, your Dad.”
At the time of writing, Travolta’s post has picked up over 300,000 likes from his 3.8 million followers.
Messages of support flooded in for John Travolta
Amongst the numerous comments of good wishes directed at Travolta and his family from an army of fans and celebrities, there was a message from Jett’s younger sister Ella Bleu, who wrote: “Happy Birthday Jetty, we love you so much.❤️”
Actress Jamie Lee Curtis wrote: “Oh John. My hand in yours. X j,” and actress Sofia Milos sent Travolta a series of heart-shaped emojis.
Jett Travolta was born in 1992, and sadly, he suffered from health issues for most of his life. He was diagnosed with Kawasaki disease when just 15 months old and began having seizures from the age of two.
In January 2009, Jett suffered a seizure after hitting his head on a bathtub in his hotel room in the Old Bahama Bay Hotel on Grand Bahama Island. He was reportedly discovered unconscious by a maid who raised the alarm; unfortunately, it was too late to save his life.
John Travolta also grieves the death of wife, Kelly Preston
The Travolta family encountered more heartbreak in the summer of 2020 when Preston passed away after a two-year battle with breast cancer. She was 57 years old.
At the time, Travolta posted a touching tribute to his wife on Instagram, where he wrote: “Kelly’s love and life will always be remembered.”
Travolta appears to maintain a close relationship with his children and constantly posts pictures of himself with Ella Bleu and Benjamin on Instagram. And last year, he also posted a very emotional tribute to Ella on her birthday.