The cast of Everybody Loves Raymond reunited for the sitcom’s 30th anniversary. But not all of the cast members are still with us. Ray Romano took a moment to pay tribute to former child star Sawyer Sweeten.
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Sawyer passed away in 2015 from suicide. He was just 19 at the time. Cast mates Doris Roberts and Peter Boyle also passed away after the show ended. Romano and his fellow cast took time to reflect on the memories of those who had departed.
In the case of Sawyer, he shared the screen with his real-life siblings, Madylin and Sullivan. All three appeared as the Barone grandchildren on all nine seasons of the show. Along with Romano, his real siblings reflected on his life and death.
Ray Romano Pays Tribute
Of being a child star, Sullivan said, “I definitely feel like I carried that experience through my whole life. I try to bring that kind of comedy wherever I go.”
It’s Romano who brought up the subject of Sawyer. He asks the two, “Can we mention….”
Madylin answered, “Sawyer? Yes.”
“Sawyer, of course, is no longer with us, and we miss him,” Romano said of the late actor.
“None of us really expected what happened, but you know, I try to think about the good moments, and oftentimes, that’s here on this set,” Sullivan said.
The siblings took the time to discuss suicide prevention and how Sawyer’s death affected them.
“I just think it’s so important in any conversation that we’re having about Sawyer, we’re very passionate in our family about suicide prevention,” Madylin said. “It is the second-leading cause of death between the ages of 18 to 25, but 90% of people who seek treatment are cured.”
“So many of the messages we get are people saying I’m so grateful to have heard about your brother,” she continued. “He saved my life.”
Madylin and her brother honor Sawyer by partnering with the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.
“People can grab a Sawyer T-shirt,” she also added. “We do T-shirts every year, and all of the proceeds go there.”