It was Beth Chapman‘s wish to be cremated following her June 26 death age 51 at from throat cancer. Her family has now scattered some of her ashes in the waters off Waikiki Beach in a secret ceremony. TMZ reports that her husband Duane “Dog the Bounty Hunter” Chapman, 66, and his children boarded a private boat and headed out to sea while everyone else was doing the paddle out following her traditional Hawaiian memorial service on June 29. That explains why he didn’t board the outrigger boat during the paddle out and wasn’t seen at that part of the memorial.
During the service on Fort DeRussy Beach in Waikiki, Hawaii, Duane delivered a moving eulogy about how Beth’s dying wish was to have a traditional Hawaiian memorial that featured a Hawaiian ‘Oli chant, followed by a prayer and then a paddle out to the ocean. Duane said she made him promise to do her memorial “right.”
The Dog the Bounty Hunter star told a story about how he buried his mother in Hilo, Hawaii and how a local tribesman on Molokai declared him to be an official Hawaiian since his mom “was part of the land, the sea, the sky and the rain” there. “And now Beth is going to be placed here too. She got there before I did, my island” he said as the crowd lightly laughed.
He continued, “And she said ‘please, Hawaiian style Duane Dog Chapman,’ — I tried to get her to call me Dog for so many years — she said please do this right. She loved Hawaii and she loved the people.” After that an outrigger boat did the traditional paddle out along with a number of surfers but Duane was not among them, as he went off to privately scatter some of Beth’s ashes. The couple also had a home in Colorado where a memorial will be held for her in Aurora, CO on July 13 and some of her ashes will also be scattered in the state.