Suzanne Somers’ granddaughter reveals ‘final birthday card’ she wrote her — gives nod to John Ritter

Suzanne Somers’ family is paying tribute to the late star following her death at age 76 on Sunday. The “Three’s Company” actress battled breast cancer for more than 23 years.

Somers died just one day shy of her 77th birthday on Monday. Her granddaughter, the daughter of Somers’ son, Bruce Somers Jr., posted the “final birthday card” she wrote for her grandmother, whom she lovingly called “Zannie.”

“‘Thank you’ is not enough. You’ve made me feel so loved. I know you’ll go peacefully, but I miss you already. I’ll miss your handwriting in thick black ink on birthday cards. And sating ribbons on gifts. I’ll miss watching you eat cake, and gorge on an extra piece, because you just love your sweets,” Violet began the letter.

“Fearless. Unstoppable. I don’t know where you’ll go, but I hope you’ll be able to sing there. All your favorites. ‘A Song For You,’ ‘Someone to Watch Over Me,’ ‘From Fram Sauce.’ I wish you the warmest welcome into the other realm,” she continued. “I’m sure there will be light, and you will follow it, and see everyone you’ve ever known.”

Violet mentioned a few names, including the late John Ritter, whom Somers starred in “Three’s Company” with alongside Joyce DeWitt. Ritter died on Sept. 11, 2003, at age 54 after suffering an aortic dissection. 

“And I’m sure it will feel like a warm hug, or like being back in the womb. You’ll be so loved. And some day when I go, you’ll be the first person I hug. We’ll cook together again, and go shopping, and eat Thanksgiving dinner and ever cake you could imagine. In the meantime, I hope you just relax,” Violet added.

“Your legacy will remain here, and I’ll always keep you with me. I know you’ll guide me in certain moments when I need you, and in moments as a surprise. You’ll visit me as a yellow butterfly, or anything you’d like. I know you wanted to see my babies, but I guess we each have our own plan, and it’s all just a beautiful mystery. Just know we’re here, loving you.”

“‘Thank you’ could never cover the gratitude,” she concluded. “So it goes … I love you more than you know.”

Violet’s dad also paid tribute to his late mom.

“She soared higher than most can dream. She protected those who didn’t have a voice. She asked the questions most didn’t know to ask,” Bruce Jr. wrote in his heartfelt Instagram post on Monday.

“She shared her challenges and brought light to solutions. To so many she was a brave warrior who articulated their fears. She wasn’t fearless, but she faced them so we could learn. She was a friend, a wife, a sister, a daughter, an entertainer, an icon, and a legend,” he continued. “But to me, she was just Mom. I had the privilege as the only person who could call her that. Growing up, it was us against the world. And then she took the world by storm.”

Somers was surrounded by her husband, Alan Hamel, and her family when she passed away. Somers and Hamel tied the knot in 1977 after nearly a decade of dating.

Bruce, 57, is from her marriage to Bruce Somers, which ended in 1968. She was also a stepmom to Hamel’s children, Stephen and Leslie Hamel, whom he shared with ex-wife Marilyn Shapiro.

Somers’ family will gather this week to “celebrate her extraordinary life” and she will be remembered at a memorial next month.