Watch: Sarah Michelle Gellar, Taylor Momsen Honor Michelle Trachtenberg One Year After Her Death
Taylor Momsen is coping with a difficult loss.
The Pretty Recklessfrontwoman paid tribute to bodyguard Mason Haynes following his death on July 4 in a traffic accident just days before his 53rd birthday.
“I’ve struggled for days and still am not sure how to process this,” Momsen captioned a July 16 Instagram carousel. “Mason Haynes was my family, my protector, my confidant and one of my closest friends. When someone knows every dark secret about you and never judges, spends 24 hours a day with you seven days a week, you form a bond that is hard to explain.”
Along with her post, Momsen shared some old photos of herself with her bodyguard, who also worked with the Kardashian-Jenner family. Notably, Haynes had been with them during one of their most traumatic moments: Kim Kardashian’s 2016 Paris robbery.
Remembering Haynes as “a powerful giant with the softest heart,” the Gossip Girl alum recalled how he handled his job with the utmost care.
“Smart as a whip, artistic and most importantly he was always putting others’ needs first,” the 32-year-old continued. “His advocacy against bullying ran deep within him. I will miss him in a way I can’t explain. My love to his family who meant more than the world to him.”
As Haynes’ family—including wife Fay, daughter Brooke and son Noah—cope with his death, Momsen encouraged her fans to donate to their GoFundMe, which was set up to help fund Haynes’ celebration of life and alleviate financial hardship in the wake of his loss.
“Since his passing, hundreds of messages have poured in from people whose lives Mason changed,” his loved ones shared on the fundraiser’s landing page. “Reading them, one thing becomes impossible to ignore. Everyone describes the same man. A man who made people feel welcome from the moment they met him. A man who would cross countries to help a friend.”
Taylor Momsen/Instagram
And Momsen isn’t the only one who has honored Haynes. His employer Trojan Security UK shared a tribute, posting a photo of him and Kris Jenner.
“We would like to pay homage to an absolute legend in the Close Protection game,” the company wrote in a July 6 Instagram post. “Big Mason. Gone too soon. Rest easy and fly high Brother.”
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