Actor Chad Lowe’s public birthday tribute to his daughter Fiona has taken on painful new weight after the family announced the 13-year-old’s death and asked for privacy and prayers.
The US Sun reported that the family of Fiona Hepler Lowe confirmed her death in a statement on Tuesday, September 29. She was 13. No cause of death was made public.
Her parents, actor Chad Lowe and Kim Painter, said they were shattered by the loss. They described a girl at the center of their home and asked the public to respect their grief.
In the family statement, they said: “We are deeply heartbroken by the loss of our beloved Fiona.”
"We are deeply heartbroken by the loss of our beloved Fiona."
They remembered her as “a loving young girl who was smart, creative, and loved to dance.” They added that she “was adored by her sisters and she was deeply loved by her parents,” and that “she was the light of our lives.”
Fiona was born in November 2012. She was the middle of three daughters. Her older sister Mabel is 17. Her younger sister Nixie is 10.
Chad Lowe, 58, and Kim Painter married in 2010. Lowe is an Emmy winner for Life Goes On and the younger brother of Rob Lowe. He has also appeared with his brother on 9-1-1: Lone Star.
The family’s public message was brief and direct. They asked for prayers. They asked for privacy. And they pointed anyone struggling with mental health to the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
On November 15, 2025, Chad Lowe posted an Instagram tribute marking Fiona “officially becoming a teen.” The post included a smiling photo of Fiona on a wooden bridge in a white top, denim shorts, and cowboy boots.
He wrote: “Celebrating Fiona officially becoming a teen today!! Keep dancing through life FiBear! Love you soooo much!!”
"Celebrating Fiona officially becoming a teen today!! Keep dancing through life FiBear! Love you soooo much!!"
That public note of pride and affection is now being read against the family’s later announcement of her death. The reporting presents it as his final public tribute to her.
In January 2025, the family’s Los Angeles home was destroyed in the Pacific Palisades fire. Weeks later, Lowe shared pictures of his daughters returning to see what remained.
He said their response had been “nothing short of remarkable.” He also said helping his daughters was his “sole purpose,” and that “Being their dad is my life’s greatest joy and privilege.”
Those earlier comments match the portrait the family offered after Fiona’s death: a father centered on his girls, and a household that called her its light.
What the public still does not have is basic official detail. The family has not released a cause of death. The place of death was not included in the announcement covered by the reporting.
So the record, for now, is limited to what the family chose to say: a 13-year-old is gone, her parents and sisters are grieving, and they want space while pointing hurting people toward help.
A parent’s public joy over a child turning 13 should never have to double as a goodbye, and a culture that still knows how to honor family grief, privacy, and honest help lines is better for it.
