Friends and family gathered for Beth Chapman‘s funeral service on Saturday, where her husband Duane “Dog” Chapman said some touching words.
Chapman passed away last week after a years-long battle with cancer, and she was laid to rest at home in Hawaii. Her family, friends and fans gathered at the Fort DeRussy Beach in Waikiki โ one of her favorite places, according to a report by TMZ. There, her husband did his best to say goodbye.
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“She said please Hawaiian style… please do this right,” Dog said. “She loved Hawaii and she loved people. The people mostly she loved.”
At Chapman’s request, her memorial service was open to the public, allowing a crowd of fans and followers to join the family for the emotional ceremony. As videos from the scene showed, the beach was filled with people of all ages gathered around Dog to hear his words.
The memorial included some traditional Hawaiian customs as well. Chapman was honored with a chant known as an oli, as well as various prayers. Afterwards, a traditional Hawaiian boat was paddled out in Chapman’s memory.
Fans also reportedly honored Chapman with a makeshift tribute to her near the family home. They piled flowers near the memorial, and outside, Dog spoke to reporters. He did his best to keep things light, but said that her death had come on quickly, and he was still processing it.
Chapman will reportedly have another memorial soon near her other home in Colorado. On the mainland, she and her husband kept a house in the state, and her memorial there will reportedly be open to the public as well. The planning is still underway.
In addition, Chapman is getting another memorial service on A&E, the network that first made her a reality TV star on Dog the Bounty Hunter. An in memoriam segment will follow a four-hour Dog the Bounty Hunter marathon on Monday, recounting her long years on TV and her commitment to her family.
Chapman previously beat cancer through a successful surgery, which was portrayed on the TV documentary Dog and Beth: Fight of Their Lives. She was cancer-free for about a year before the illness returned in November. Doctors found that her stage 1 throat cancer had grown and spread into stage 4 lung cancer, and Chapman turned to her faith through the last few months.
Last weekend, Chapman was hospitalized with breathing trouble. Doctors placed her in a medically-induced coma, and ultimately there was nothing else they could do for her.
Chapman is survived by several children, stepchildren and grandchildren, as well as her husband. She was 51 years old.