Tina Turner Spreads Oldest Son's Ashes from Boat in California: 'My Saddest Moment as a Mother'

Tina Turner has said her final goodbyes to her oldest son, Craig Turner, after his death by suicide earlier this month.

On Friday, the 78-year-old music icon shared a photo taken after she spread Craig’s ashes from a boat in the ocean.

“My saddest moment as a mother,” wrote the singer, who held a rose in her hand as the photo was taken.

“On Thursday, July 19 2018, I said my final goodbye to my son, Craig Raymond Turner, when I gathered with family and friends to scatter his ashes off the coast of California,” Tina continued. “He was 59 when he died so tragically, but he will always be my baby.”

RELATED: Tina Turner’s Oldest Son Craig Dies by Suicide at Age 59

Craig was the son of Tina — who was just 18 when she gave birth to him — and saxophonist Raymond Hill, who performed with Ike Turner’s band Kings of Rhythm. Craig was adopted by Ike after he and Tina married in 1962.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, he worked as a real estate agent in California.

A spokesperson for the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner told PEOPLE Craig was pronounced dead at 12:38 p.m. after being found dead in his Studio City, California, home from a self-inflicted gunshot wound on July 3.

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Just hours before her son’s death, Tina attended Giorgio Armani Privé Haute Couture fashion show in Paris as part of the Haute Couture Paris Fashion Week.

The “Proud Mary” singer has lived in Europe since 1995 with her German record-executive husband Erwin Bach. In 2013, she relinquished her American citizenship.

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Tina has been open about the abuse she suffered at the hands of Craig’s adoptive father, Ike, who died in 2007. In May 2005, Tina revealed to Oprah Winfrey that it particularly took a toll on Craig, who “was a very emotional kid.”

“He’d always look down in sadness,” she said of her son’s response to her abuse. “One day when Ike was fighting me, Craig knocked on the door and said, ‘Mother, are you all right?’ I thought, ‘Oh, please, don’t beat me at home.’ I didn’t want my children to hear.”

The singer recently launched a musical based on her life, Tina, in London — which details every turbulent moment of her 50-year singing career.

If you or someone you know is considering suicide, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), text “help” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 or go to suicidepreventionlifeline.org.