Just a few days after Miguel Cervantes and Kelly Cervantes‘ 3-year-old daughter Adelaide died, the Hamilton star and his wife held a celebration of life for the toddler who battled a series of health issues her entire life.
“To all of Adelaide’s army, to all who touched her and comforted her and tried to say her, you will always be a part of our family,” Miguel, 42, said toward the end of the 40-minute service at the Harold Washington Public Library in Chicago on Sunday. “Adelaide will live on in all of us.”
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With Kelly, 37, standing reassuringly by his side and stroking his back, Cervantes looked up and started to cry. “I think she’s dancing and smiling right now,” he said.
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Kelly took to Instagram a few days before the celebration of life to share a photo of the two of them holding Adelaide in their arms with their foreheads pressed together above her.
“No amount of flowers, food, alcohol or words can fill the gaping void left in Adelaide’s absence, and right now, I don’t want it to,” Kelly Cervantes wrote in the caption. She pointed her followers toward a blog post written by another mother of a sick child in which she invites her friends and family to “sit with me in the dark” during the difficult time.
In November 2018, Miguel and Kelly told PEOPLE that Adelaide missed some traditional milestones as a baby, and when she was just 7 months old, she experienced her first seizure. Doctors quickly determined the seizure was a result of epilepsy. Then, at 9 months old, she was diagnosed with Infantile Spasms (IS).
Despite the battles Adelaide was forced to fight throughout her life, her parents chose to celebrate “Adelaideybug,” who was “equal parts soft and fiery” and whose “energy was magnetic.”
During the service, in which family, friends and over 200 members of the general public were greeted with songs like “Here Comes the Sun” and Rent‘s “Seasons of Love,” various members of the Chicago production of Hamilton performed “Touch the Sky” from the movie Brave.
Hamilton co-star Andrew Call officially welcomed everyone, calling Adelaide “a gift from day one.” Family and friends went onstage, which was decorated with bright flowers, for various readings. At one point, various Hamilton stars performed the song “Til the Calm Comes,” a song Cervantes wrote for his daughter.
After several emotional readings from family members and friends, Cervantes thanked everyone for attending and the service ended with a performance of “Proud Corazòn” from the movie Coco.
Cervantes is currently taking a break from his leading role in the Chicago production of Hamilton, although he reportedly plans to return to the stage soon.
