Sarah Michelle Gellar thanked fans for donating to animal charities in her late friend Shannen Doherty’s honor following her death at age 53 on Saturday.

Days after encouraging her followers to support their local shelters in the Beverly Hills 90210 star’s memory, the 47-year-old Buffy the Vampire Slayer marveled at their generosity.

‘Thank you for all the love… and for all the amazing donations. We are all truly overwhelmed,’ she wrote on Instagram. 

The mother-of-two also shared some her favorite videos that captured ‘the Shan’ she knew for three decades. 

The Emmy winner included footage of them goofing around in the backyard, drinking and even a silly recording of Doherty recreating one of Gellar’s thirst traps. 

Gellar went on to describe Doherty as ‘the friend that was up for anything no matter how ridiculous.’ 

Gellar concluded her caption by pledging that she and Anne Marie Kortright ‘promise to keep the tradition alive.’ 

On Monday, the performer uploaded a touching tribute in Doherty’s honor. 

Gellar wrote: ‘How do you possibly find the right words to sum up 30 years of friendship?’ 

Sarah became a household name in the 1990s with her hit series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Cruel intentions – and Shannen with her popular series Beverly Hills 90210 and Charmed. 

The stars met in the 1990s and have been friends since, with Sarah revealing in a 2020 interview with People that they talk ‘every day.’

‘I keep reminding myself it only hurts this much because, there was so much love. Thank you, for all your kind words and support.’

‘I love all the messages about how @theshando was important to you. So let’s honor her. More than anything.’

Adding: ‘Shan loves animals, especially dogs. In her memory let’s support our favorite animal charities. Whether that’s donating money, stopping by your local shelter and just offering cuddles and walks to animals housed there or even just tagging them in the comments so other people can learn about their work.’

‘I know that would make our girl happy (and illicit that deep throaty laugh we all loved),’ she said, ending it with broken hearts.

Shannen’s passed away over the weekend following a nine-year battle with breast cancer.

Shannen’s publicist Leslie Sloane announced her death on Sunday via a statement: ‘On Saturday, July 13, she lost her battle with cancer after many years of fighting the disease.’

‘The devoted daughter, sister, aunt and friend was surrounded by her loved ones as well as her dog Bowie. The family asks for their privacy at this time so they can grieve in peace.’

Doherty, who played Brenda Walsh in the hit 1990s show, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015.

Following the popular series, she went on to star in the witch drama, Charmed. Doherty played Prue Halliwell, the oldest of the three witch sisters.

After directing several episodes of Charmed, Doherty left the series in 2001. She then moved on to reality television, as a contestant on Dancing with the Stars and in the show Breaking Up with Shannen Doherty.

Just two years later, the Charmed star revealed that the cancer had returned after going into remission.

At the time, she told Good Morning America: ‘It’s going to come out in a matter of days or a week that I’m stage 4. So my cancer came back, and that’s why I’m here.

‘I don’t think I’ve processed it. It’s a bitter pill to swallow in a lot of ways,’ she said. 

Doherty initially kept her diagnosis under wraps, but after her co-star Luke Perry suddenly died at 52 in 2019, she opened up about her health battle. 

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Source: Tampa Bay Times