Naya Rivera memorial: Fans attend vigil honoring actress at Lake Piru

LAKE PIRU, Calif. (KABC) -- Fans lined up along a road overlooking Lake Piru in Ventura County, leaving flowers at a memorial during a vigil honoring Naya Rivera on Saturday.

"It's very hard for us to accept that she's no longer with us," said vigil organizer Liset Ortiz.
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Rivera, who starred in the popular musical television series 'Glee,' died nearly three weeks ago in what authorities determined was an accidental drowning.

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The 33-year-old actress took a boat out on Lake Piru spending an afternoon with her 4-year-old son. Later that day, her son was found alone in the boat. Days later, searchers found Rivera's body in the lake.

Heartbroken fans say they admired Rivera as a person and as a performer. Many of them identified with the character she played on glee.
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"With the help of her character, she helped me accept myself for who I really was and I was more open with my sexuality," said fan Kimberly Martinez.

"Santana, her character on Glee meant a lot to the LGBTQ+ community. She was a great actress, a great person, a great mother," said fan Christina Saunders.

WATCH: Surveillance video shows Naya Rivera, son at Lake Piru before her disappearance
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Balloons were released over the lake as a final tribute.



"She taught me how to be myself and be unapologetic about it," said Ortiz.

"This is a way for us to say goodbye to her. Not just us but a million, thousand people on Twitter, Instagram, are all here with us."

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