Cory Monteith’s dad speaks out about his son’s death

Today marks the one year anniversary of Cory Monteith’s death in a Vancouver hotel.

The 31-year-old died following an overdose of alcohol and heroin, and his dad is still mourning the loss of his son: “I still miss him very much and I still have the empty feeling.”

Joe Montieth was estranged from his son for most of his life, but a couple of years before Cory’s death, the father and son had begun to rebuild their relationship. However, despite their reconciliation, Joe didn’t get to go to his son’s funeral: “I didn’t get to go to his viewing, which would have meant a lot.”

However, Cory’s mum Ann McGregor got in touch with Joe recently: “I did receive an email from his mother a couple of days ago [and] in the near future she’s going to be sending me some of his stuff.”

While Cory and his dad seemed to be building bridges in the years before his death, Joe says they weren’t in touch when Cory went to rehab in March 2013: “The only thing I knew was through watching [the news].”

Today is bound to be a difficult day for Lea Michele aswell, Cory’s girlfriend at the time. The Glee star has recently been linked with aspiring actor Matthew Paetz, and Joe says he’s glad she is carrying on with her life: “She’s a beautiful young woman, she’s just getting to the top of her career and I don’t expect her to go out and do it alone. She should enjoy life. She had a good time when she was with Cory, from what I understand, but life’s gotta go on.”