Ryan Reynolds Mourns Wrexham Fan Whose Dying Wish Was to Meet Him: ‘One of The Bravest People'

Ryan Reynolds is mourning the loss of "one of the bravest people" he's ever met.

Reynolds, 46, honored Jay Fear, the Wrexham superfan whose dying wish was to meet him, in a series of Instagram stories on Thursday after Fear's death.

"Rip Jay Fear. One of the bravest, kindest, and most generous people I've ever met," the Wrexham co-owner wrote in his first post.

In a second slide, Reynolds shared a thoughtful message to Fear's children, Sam and Jess. "Thank you for sharing your dad with me," he wrote in a message.

"I know how inadequate words must be given your enormous loss. Sending you all our love from my family, Wrexham and beyond. I loved every second I spent with Jay."

Fear had terminal appendix cancer and met Reynolds in April at Wrexham's Racecourse Stadium as his dying wish, the BBC reported.

After the 20-minute meeting, Reynolds told the BBC, "It was amazing to meet Jay. He is an exceptional person and his family is wonderful."

Reynolds said the meeting had him "a little choked up" after he spent time with the family and saw "how much his kids and wife are going to miss him," added Reynolds, emotionally.

Fear spoke to BBC 5 Live's Sunday Breakfast after meeting his idol. He said, "They always say you should never meet your idol and this guy is definitely an exception to that. He made me feel welcome and spent time with [my] wife and kids as well."

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

"People might think this whole thing was for me," Fear continued. "Actually, this is for [my family] because they are the ones that are going to remember what happened for the rest of their lives.

"I just hope this is a core memory that they'll never forget," he added.

Reynolds and McElhenney purchased the Welsh soccer team in 2021. Although Wrexham is in Wales, the team plays in the English soccer league.

Following its recent promotion, the club will compete in League Two, the fourth and lowest division of England's professional soccer system.