Cameron Boyce Remembered at 3rd Annual Foundation Gala: 'He Just Lit Up the Room' (Exclusive)

'Descendants' director Kenny Ortega tells PEOPLE the late actor was "the most generous and delightful, loving, kind person"

• Cameron Boyce's friends and family paid tribute to the late actor at the Cam For A Cause: A Fundraiser for The Cameron Boyce Foundation To End Epilepsy event on Sunday, June 2

• The gala took place six days after what would have been Cameron's 25th birthday on May 28

• "It was a very hard day, but it was also a very beautiful thing to see what he meant to so many people," Cameron's mom Libby tells PEOPLE of his loved ones' birthday tributes

Cameron Boyce's legacy is alive and being celebrated by those closest to him.

On Sunday, June 2, The Cameron Boyce Foundation (TCBF) held its third annual fundraising gala in the actor's memory at The Beehive in Downtown Los Angeles.

The event — aptly titled Cam For A Cause: A Fundraiser for The Cameron Boyce Foundation To End Epilepsy — is held every year in an effort to raise money and awareness for epilepsy and SUDEP (Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy), which tragically caused the young actor's death in July 2019.

While speaking to PEOPLE at the event, Cameron's parents Libby and Victor Boyce paid tribute to their late son following what would have been his 25th birthday on May 28.

Victor says the birthday love for Cameron "means everything" because it means "the support is still there." "Because of the love that Cameron receives, we still get, or we can grow as a foundation. We can push the mission out, we can push the message out because people still want to hold onto him. They don't want him to be gone," Victor tells PEOPLE. "And so, as well as us upholding his legacy, all of his fans, all of his supporters, they still keep his legacy alive. And that's super important, obviously for many reasons for us."

"For me, it's a reminder of just what a beautiful soul we birthed, but also we raised. And so, it's very mixed. It was very bittersweet. It was a very hard day, but it was also a very beautiful thing to see what he meant to so many people," Libby adds to PEOPLE.

Libby admits "you don't have a choice" but to get through birthdays as a family, as Victor shares, "No, it's a daily struggle. It's not something ... People say, 'What about this birthday?' And 'What about this and that?' It's like every day is that day. There's no one day that's worse or better than the other. It is a constant cloud over us. However, it is also a beautiful reminder, like she said, of how wonderful he was."

Kenny Ortega, who directed Cameron in the three Descendants movies, says while paying tribute to the late star, "He just lit up the room. The room changed, the intensity when he would step into a room. He just was always ebullient and full of enthusiasm and energy and was the most generous and delightful, loving, kind person. And so when I think of him, all of that. All of that."

Describing Cameron as "like sunshine," Sofia Carson, who starred in The Descendants films with the late actor, tells PEOPLE, "Every time I think of him, I think of his smile and that I think that he feels like sunshine, and no matter what was happening, if he had just had a seizure and we didn't know and he had just worked a 16-hour day, he walked through life with such joy and I don't think any of us could ever let that go."

"I think once you know Cam, you know and you love him forever, and it's surreal that we have to talk about him in the past tense. It's not fair, but he's making a difference in the lives of millions and for generations to come," she continues.

Related: Sofia Carson, China Anne McClain, Victor Boyce and More Celebrate Cameron Boyce on What Would've Been His 25th Birthday

Victor Boyce's comments come after he shared a tribute post on Instagram to mark Cameron's 25th birthday, in which he remembered his son's light and celebrated how he touched so many in his lifetime.

“Happy 25th birthday my beautiful son. There's no words to express how much we love and miss you," he captioned a black-and-white photo of his late son. "Even though you've left us, you still continue to touch and inspire people all around the globe. It's still feels like a dream that I wish I could wake up from [sic]. I miss you so much Cameron.”

Related: Cameron Boyce's Parents Reflect on His 'Tremendous Loss' 4 Years Ago and Why He Would Be 'Proud' of Them Now

Cameron's younger sister Maya also posted a black screen on her Instagram Stories with "25" written over it in tribute to her older brother.

At last year's gala, Descendants stars Carson, Cameron and Booboo Stewart reunited as they attended the event.

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When the gala first kicked off in 2022, Victor told PEOPLE that his son "didn't want presents" on his birthday when he was alive, and the annual event honors that.

"He wanted to give back and he would always do something to help others. In that spirit, that's why we're doing the gala," he shared.

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