So SweetBuddy Valastro Says ‘Cake Boss’ Footage Will Help Keep His Mom’s Memory Alive After Her Death

It’s only been about a month since Buddy Valastro’s mom’s tragic death following a long battle with ALS, but the Cake Boss star is already revealing how he plans to keep her memory alive for years to come.

During a new interview with People, the 40-year-old baker said his family — and all of their fans around the world — will continue to cherish scenes of his mother, Mary Valastro, from their hit TLC show Cake Boss. “That’s the beauty of television — we have all that footage of seeing Momma the way you want,” he admitted.

In fact, Buddy and his four sisters sweetly put together a video of all of Mary’s best Cake Boss moments and showed it during her Tuesday, June 27 funeral. “We just all watched it and we cried; it was an amazing tribute to her. We wanted to give her a really good goodbye,” he said of the special moment.

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It’s with an extremely heavy heart that I must share the news of my mother’s passing. She left for heaven this morning, surrounded by the family. This is a difficult time for all of us and I do ask for your patience and respect while we let this sink in. Her battle with ALS has ended, she is no longer suffering and I hope she’s dancing to “I Will Survive” with my dad right now.

A post shared by Buddy Valastro (@buddyvalastro) on Jun 22, 2017 at 9:48am PDT

Buddy confirmed to People that while the reality show’s cameras weren’t present during Mary’s funeral service, a portion of the memorial reception was recorded and will appear on a future Cake Boss episode. “I feel like that’s what she would’ve wanted. We want to keep her memory alive,” Buddy — who lost his father, Bartolo Valastro, Sr., in 1994 — said. “The way I keep my father’s memory alive [on the series], I’m going to keep my mother’s alive.”

Mary sadly passed away at age 69 after an eight-year battle with ALS on Thursday, June 22. The day before her death, Buddy visited his mother at her New Jersey apartment. “I got to sit by her and say, ‘Ma, I owe everything to you. I wouldn’t be who I am without you. You’re my No. 1 girl.’ I got to say my peace. I got to say goodbye to her,” he revealed.

“She was the most energetic, lively, bubbly person I ever met in my life. She was like a firecracker on steroids,” Buddy sweetly added. Rest in peace, Mary, we will all miss you.