Criscilla Anderson announced her own death with a statement released on social media by her friend Lindsey Villatoro. Photo: Criscilla Anderson/Instagram
Country Ever After star Criscilla Anderson has died at at age 45 following a seven-year battle with colon cancer.
The reality TV personality, hip-hop choreographer and ex-wife of country music crooner Coffey Anderson announced her own death with a statement released on social media by her friend Lindsey Villatoro.
“If you’re reading this, I’ve finally slipped into the arms of Jesus — peacefully and surrounded by love,” read the statement that was shared on Tuesday. “Please don’t stay in the darkness of this moment. I fought hard and I loved deeply. I am not gone… I’m Home.”
Villatoro, an event and portrait photographer, said her heart was “shattered” to share the news.
“I promised Criscilla I would walk this journey with her whenever she couldn’t stand on her own two feet, and I pray she knows how fiercely she was loved,” she wrote. “Being by her side until the very end was the greatest honor of my life.”
Anderson’s ex-husband, with whom she co-parented four children, also paid tribute to her on Tuesday.
“Criscilla defined strength and fighter like no other person on the planet. Heaven gained a star today,” the Mr. Red, White And Blue singer wrote in a touching Instagram tribute.
“We miss you already. Our hearts are shattered. Our minds are jumbled. Our lives will never be the same,” he continued. “The house is quieter because you’re missing. The babies are resilient and strong as ever. We did good with them. So, dance your heart out on the beach in heaven. No more pain, no colostomy bag, no more neuropathy, no chemo, or radiation and you can eat as much dessert as you want with no calories. I’m glad you get to meet the two babies we lost.”
The couple, who wed in 2009 and filed for divorce in 2022, co-starred in the Netflix reality show Country Ever After — which ran for one season on the streamer in 2020.
The former choreographer for the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders was first diagnosed with colon cancer in 2018. She was in remission during 2021 before the cancer returned the following year.
According to a Nov 15 health update, Anderson suffered from a stroke and had received an MRI scan showing the cancer had spread. – New York Daily News/Tribune News Service
