Dog The Bounty Hunter star Duane “Dog” Chapman shared a Memorial Day message with fans on Monday, wishing them a safe holiday. He also offered some words of advice on how people should treat each other with kindness. This year’s Memorial Day is Chapman’s first since his wife Beth Chapman died last year following a battle with cancer. It also falls weeks after his engagement to Francie Frane.
“Happy and safe Memorial Day,” Chapman tweeted, alongside an American flag emoji. He also shared a meme Monday, showing one person helping another get up. “You seriously have no idea what people are dealing with in their personal life,” the message reads. “So just be nice, it’s that simple.” The messages clearly resonated with his followers, many of whom shared similar sentiments in response.
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Chapman did not share a Memorial Day message on Instagram, but he did post a pair of pictures from his weekend fishing trip in Colorado. He showed off a big fish he caught with daughter “Baby Lyssa” Chapman and his niece Bridgette. “Great fishing this weekend in Colorado,” he wrote, adding some praise for Bridgette’s fishing skills.
Chapman recently marked a somber anniversary. Tuesday marked the 15th anniversary of his daughter Barbara Katie Chapman’s death. Barbara died in May 2006 in a car crash at her home in Fairbanks, Alaska. She was only 23 at the time. She died the night before Chapman married Beth, with the newlyweds reportedly announcing Barbara’s death to guests during the ceremony. Barabra’s mother was Chapman’s third wife, Lyssa Rae Chapman.
Earlier this month, Chapman announced plans to marry a sixth time. He proposed to Frane after just a few months of dating. The two met after Chapman called Frane to hire her husband for yard work, only to learn that he had died of cancer several months prior. They connected over their shared loss of a spouse and quickly fell in love. In a recent interview with The U.S. Sun, Frane and Chapman disagreed with concerns they might be moving too fast. “…We both have done our share of screaming and crying and asking why,” Frane explained. “Then for us to come together the way that we did and build this friendship because of what we’ve been through, that turned into a love story. We don’t believe that it’s too soon.”
Chapman told The Sun he hopes to have a big wedding with his fans in attendance, although that is too hard to plan during the coronavirus pandemic. “It would be one hell of a party and it’s just what people need right now,” he said. “I told Francie, people they need a little love after being locked down. I love the idea of that.”
