- Gamer N64Josh shared the news of his son’s passing over the weekend.
- The father said he was touched by the support from the gaming community.
Gamer N64Josh heartbreakingly announced that his son Gavin had taken his own life after “losing the battle with his demons.”
The streamer, whose real name is Josh Schmidt, shared the news Tuesday after his son’s death, saying it was “the hardest weekend of my life.”
“I’m broken,” he said. said in X. “I know a lot of the gaming community knew him and loved him.”
Tributes flooded in for the player’s son, with Josh adding that “the outpouring of love from so many of you is overwhelming and I am so grateful for all the kind words.”
Gavin Schmidt, the son of gamer N64Josh, tragically took his own life over the weekend after “losing the battle with his demons,” his father said.
After sharing the news of his son’s death, Josh took to TikTok to speak to his followers, where he said that making the video “wasn’t something I ever wanted to have to do.”
“I love this boy,” he said, pointing to a smiling photo of Gavin, whose age is unknown. “He knew it.”
“It was incredible, you have no idea how many lives it touched, no idea.”
The player said in the clip that the loss was “still fresh” and “very raw,” but added that he made the video because he “wanted the world to know how incredible it was.”
Speaking to her 70,000 followers, she said she “wanted everyone to know how wonderful you are, that you are loved and that you matter.”
“The world is a better place because you are in it.”
In the days following his son’s death, several of Josh’s followers in the gaming community shared their own struggles, and the father sent messages of hope to others in the wake of the tragedy.
She said she was having “snap streaks,” a feature of the Snapchat app that counts how many days in a row users talked to each other, to all of their children, and that she was distressed to see Gavin’s come to an end.
Another viewer shared how after their friend passed away, they paid the app to keep theirs up as it helped them feel connected, to which the grieving father replied: “Sending love your way.”
“Keep fighting, it doesn’t matter, you are loved,” he sent to another fan, who told him they were “on the brink.”
Josh (right) said his son Gavin (left) ‘had no idea how many lives he touched’
Josh said he was distraught to see his streak with his son come to an end.
TO GoFundMe was created to help with the family’s funeral expenses, which raised more than $4,000 at the time of this writing.
The fundraiser, organized by a family friend, said Gavin was “loved, will be loved and cherished forever.”
“Loss is never easy and in times like this community is even more important than ever,” the fundraiser reads. “Gavin was known and loved in the gaming community.”