Eric Dane’s friends are seeking support for his young daughters in the wake of the Grey’s Anatomy star’s death at 53.
Dane died 10 months after publicly announcing his amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), aka Lou Gehrig’s disease, diagnosis, PEOPLE confirmed on Thursday, Feb. 19.
The actor is survived by his two girls, Billie Beatrice Dane, 15, and Georgia Geraldine Dane, 13, with ex Rebecca Gayheart.
Dane spent “his final days surrounded by dear friends, his devoted wife, and his two beautiful daughters, Billie and Georgia, who were the center of his world,” his family said in a statement.
Friends of the actor started a GoFundMe in the wake of Dane’s death to assist with medical expenses and help support his daughters’ future, PEOPLE can confirm.
“Even as his own health declined, he remained deeply committed to helping others facing the same devastating disease,” the GoFundMe states. “As his illness progressed far more quickly than anyone could have imagined, Eric’s friends have come together to create this GoFundMe to support his girls and their future needs.”
Dane met Gayheart in 2003, and the pair wed less than a year later in Las Vegas. Dane and Gayheart, 54, separated in 2018, but she was a key caregiver for the Euphoria star in the wake of his diagnosis. In an essay for The Cut last year, the actress said she had taken charge of Dane’s medical care, which had been divided into 21 shifts.
“There are times that shifts aren’t covered, so I cover them. There was a 12-hour shift recently that I could not cover. I could only do four hours because of all the stuff that the kids are doing,” she explained.
In a November 2025 podcast appearance, Gayheart said she made sure her girls understood “we show up for people no matter what” as their dad’s ALS progressed. “He is our family. He is your father,” Gayheart said she told her daughters. “We show up, and we try to do it with some dignity and some grace and just get through it.”
Eric Dane, Rebecca Gayheart and daughters Billie Beatrice Dane and Georgia Dane attend the 16th annual Chrysalis Butterfly Ball on June 3, 2017 in Brentwood, California.Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic
The couple’s children had been living with Gayheart “100 percent of the time,” she told the Broad Ideas podcast. “I try to stay optimistic, though, about it all,” she said. “I’m trying to learn from it and [be a] role model for them [in] how to go through something like this, which is really hard.”
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She added, “I don’t know if I’m doing it well or if I’m doing it in the wrong way or the right way. I’m just showing up. I’m showing up and I’m trying to be there for them. I guess time will tell.”
