SGranitz/WireImageMichael Galeota's family and friends, including fellow former Disney Star Shia LaBeouf, bid their final farewells to the actor at a funeral on Saturday, E! News has learned exclusively.
Galeota, who starred in the 1996 film Clubhouse Detectives and the Disney Channel TV show The Jersey, was pronounced dead on Jan. 10 at his residence in Glendale, Calif. He was 31.The Los Angeles County Coroner's office had said Galeota appeared to have died of natural causes and scheduled an examination. He had suffered from several health problems, such as abdominal pain, hypertension, and high cholesterol.
His funeral took place at St. Robert's Church in Burbank, not far from his home, and was attended by about 100 family members and friends. His father and brother spoke at the service.
"People reminisced about Mike's big heart and said that he is everlasting," a source told E! News. "There was laughter, there were tears. People talked about the memories they had with him. His dad said this is the hardest things he will ever go through."
"Mike was the type of guy that if you ask him for $5, he will find a way to get $10," the source said. "Always giving and thinking of others. He was a jokester and a true star. They talked about his accomplishments and his days of fame. Mike would have loved the turn out today. He was loved!"
LaBeouf, who rose to fame as a child star on the Disney Channel series Even Stevens, used to be close friends with Galeota. At the funeral, he sat up front, wearing a T-shirt and baseball cap, and appeared somber and very sad.
The actor had donated $5,000 to a GoFundMe page that was set up to raise funds for his funeral, E! News has confirmed.
"Shia and Michael were best friends when they were younger and even though they weren't as close as they once were as they always asked about each other," another source told E! News exclusively. "Shia found out about Michael's death through a mutual friend who passed along the GoFundMe link. Shia then donated the money without hesitation."
Another source told E! News Galeota "was the funniest person" and "the most generous, kind hearted and loving person we all knew."
"He was the good that was missing in humanity and he showed an everlasting display of humility when it came to his fellow man," the source said. "He was smart and talented beyond years and he had ambition and high hopes for the future and creating his own family and growing old with his people."