Anna “Chickadee” Cardwell’s husband, Eldridge Toney, who she secretly married before her death, is opening up about his wife’s final moments before she died on Saturday. She was 29.
“Everyone was crying and freaking out, because we all knew what was happening,” he told People in an interview, which was published on Friday. “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.
“I was holding her hand when she took her final breath.”
Mama June Shannon’s oldest daughter was diagnosed with stage 4 adrenal carcinoma in January. She and Toney began dating in 2017 and tied the knot in March.
Cardwell welcomed daughter Kylee Madison in 2015 with ex-husband Michael Cardwell. She was also mom to daughter Kaitlyn Elizabeth, born in 2012.
“The day before she passed, we had our talk and said our goodbyes,” Toney told People. “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.”
Cardwell was remembered at a funeral on Wednesday, where they revealed to the outlet that her final days were filmed for their family’s show, WE tv’s “Mama June: Family in Crisis.”
“That’s what she wanted,” her loved ones said.
Cardwell previously appeared on TLC’s “Toddlers & Tiaras” and “Here Comes Honey Boo Boo.”
Mama June confirmed her daughter’s death via Instagram on Sunday.
“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,” Shannon, 44, wrote, adding that she “passed away with her family around her.”
Eighteen-year-old Honey Boo Boo — real name Alana Thompson — broke her silence on her older sister’s passing on her social media accounts that same day.
“Last night we all surrounded Anna with love & let her know it was okay to go. Unfortunately around 11pm Anna took her last breathe. Anna was in so much pain last night but now as a family we all know she is at peace now. I really don’t know what to say as my heart is completely broken,” she wrote.
“Watching my 29 year old sister this last year battle this horrible disease hasn’t been easy. Anna was a fighter & still is,” Thompson continued. “Lord please wrap your arms around her 2 babies & our family as the next couple of days will make this all a reality.”