'RHOM' Alum Alexia Echevarria's Mom Dies Of COVID-19 On What Was Supposed To Be Her Wedding Day: 'The Happiest Day Of My Life Today Has Turned Out To Be The Saddest'
Alexia Echevarria's mom died of COVID-19 on what was supposed to be the 54-year-old and fiancé Todd Nepola's wedding day.
The Real Housewives of Miami alum took to Instagram on Wednesday, August 25, to share the sad news. She posted a series of throwback photos of the mother and daughter.
"Early this morning I lost my mom to the horrible and deadly COVID-19," the blonde beauty captioned the post. "The last couple of days have been a rollercoaster of emotions for me. I was on the road to marry the man of my dreams when I had to stop everything as my mother became ill."
"What was supposed to be the happiest day of my life today has turned out to be the saddest. My mom, Nancy, was a woman of strength and beauty. Over the years I watched how she lived her life, HER WAY," she continued, describing her mother as her "best friend" and "psychiatrist."
"My mother was the kind of woman that was respected, admired, inspirational and so ahead of her times. She was a trailblazer in so many aspects of life. A political refugee from Cuba, who put herself through medical school in the 1960s," Echevarria wrote. "Raised three children on her own with the help of my grandmother."
"She showed me to live unapologetically, never look back, and don’t regret the things you’ve done but the things you haven’t," the TV personality said.
"To say I will miss you does no justice for what I feel, no amount of tears can express the pain I feel in losing you but then again thank you for the honor of sharing a lifetime with me. Rest In Peace Mami. I know you’re in a better place dancing and drinking champagne. Please watch over us, as I need all the help from up above. I now have another angel. Until we meet again," she concluded.
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Fans and friends reached out in the comment section to offer their condolences.
"Praying for your family ❤️," Larsa Pippen wrote.
"Alexiae, so deeply sorry about your mother’s passing. I’m keeping you and your entire family lifted in prayer. So much love to you Beautiful 🙏🏾❤️," Eboni K. Williams commented.
"I’m so sorry my friend.. may she rest in peace 🤍🙌🏻," actress Elizabeth Gutierrez offered.
Echevarria and Nepola got engaged in December 2019, but postponed their wedding due to the coronavirus pandemic. "Our plans were pretty much put on hold now with the very unfortunate situation that we're living in the world right now," she told the Daily Dish last year.
"There's more important things to focus on now and to worry about, so we decided that we would probably get married in the beginning of the year. I want it to be a religious wedding because I never was able to marry in the past religiously, and for me, that's very important," she told the outlet at the time.
Echevarria starred in the first three seasons of RHOM. The reality show went off the air in 2013, but has since been rebooted. Echevarria is slated to return for season four, which is reportedly in production.
