Anna “Chickadee” Cardwell‘s husband, Eldrige Toney, opened up about his wife’s poignant last moments in an emotional new interview. The reality TV star passed away on December 9. “Everyone was crying and freaking out, because we all knew what was happening,” he told PEOPLE for comments published on Friday, December 15. “I did my best to be calm for her. I rubbed my hands through her hair, held her hand and told her it was going to be OK.” He added, “I was holding her hand when she took her final breath.”
Eldrige secretly married Anna back in March, a couple of months after her devastating diagnosis of stage four adrenal carcinoma. He says he and his ailing wife spoke the day before her death. “The day before she passed, we had our talk and said our goodbyes,” he told the outlet. “Her dying wish was for her girls to grow up knowing who their mother was. And I promised I would do right by the girls always. I will spend my life doing right by Anna and the girls.” Anna had two daughters, Kaitlyn, 11, and Kylee, 8, and her death fell on the birthday of her youngest daughter.
Mama June Shannon announced her eldest daughter’s death at the age of just 29 on Sunday, December 10, in a social media statement. “With the breaking heart, we are announcing that @annamarie35 is no longer with us. She passed away in my home last night peacefully at 11:12 PM,” the Here Comes Honey Boo Boo star wrote alongside a family photo.
On Wednesday, the family gathered for funeral services. PEOPLE reported that the memorial took place at the Williams-White Columns Funeral Home in Gordon, Georgia, with a private service and public visitation. Cell phones were reportedly banned, and the outlet reported that a slideshow of the famous family was shown.
In a post announcing the memorial service on December 11, Mama June thanked her fans for their support amid the tragic loss. “We love you guys,” she captioned a video post. “We appreciate everyone that has sent well wishes they have sent their prayers and everything for not just us before [sic] her kids.”