Greetings and salutations, fellow stargazers! This is Serene Lim with a special memory to share.

Even though I’m not a Gleek (okay, maybe only Season 1), I actually found myself sad about Cory Monteith’s death on July 13. I googled needlessly for updates about his death and read endless tribute tweets from his friends and other celebrities. I even watched a few YouTube videos of him.

It’s all because I actually met this guy. Two years ago, I went on a work trip to cover a number of Fox’s TV shows that included their megahit, Glee. Cory Monteith was one of the stars we got to interview. And boy, was he also one of the nicest ones. He had no airs, came across as really affable and answered everything sincerely, as best as he could. Even the most hardened reporters in the room commented that he was “just so nice and sweet” compared to some of his sleeker co-stars.

The outpouring from friends and colleagues who worked with him testified to that genuine and wonderful side of him -- the latest being Glee co-star Dianna Agron, who said in a statement, “Cory is so deserving of that place in everyone’s hearts. He was one of the most generous and kind people that I have ever met.” Unfortunately, the actor had had his demons since he was a teen. Despite him trying to get help, the addiction got the better of him.

I haven’t watched Glee in a while. Perhaps I’ll tune in again. In memory of him.

Tomorrow (July 20), Star World will air a special Tribute To Cory Monteith, with four specially selected Glee episodes back to back. Catch it from 7.50pm to 11.30pm on SingTel mio TV Ch 301 or StarHub TV Ch 501.