It may seem difficult to believe, but it’s been three months now since Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds died.
Absolutely heartbreaking, right?
On December 23rd, Carrie was on a flight to L.A. when she suffered a massive heart attack. When paramedics were able to get to her on the airport, she was unresponsive.
She remained in the hospital for a few days, but on December 27th, she passed away.
The very next day, Carrie’s mother, the legendary Debbie Reynolds, died after suffering a stroke.
Intense, right? And so very, very heartbreaking.
Carrie and Debbie had a joint funeral in January for family and friends: Carrie was cremated with her ashes placed in an urn shaped like a Prozac pill, and Debbie was buried along with some of Carrie’s ashes.
But today, a public memorial was held for them both at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in L.A.
And it was so, so touching.
The event was organized by Todd Fisher, Carrie’s brother and Debbie’s son.
In a speech to the audience, Todd explained that “When Carrie died, my mother decided to change her plans a bit.”
“My mother always said to me, ‘I never want to go to my daughter’s funeral service. I would like to be buried with Carrie."”
“I didn’t know she was going to leave us the very next day,” he said, “and when she looked at me to ask permission to leave, she said she wanted to be with Carrie, and she closed her eyes and went to sleep.”
“It was a beautiful exit.”
The service featured music composed by John Williams, as well as performances by the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles and dancers from Debbie Reynolds’ dance studio.
Dan Aykroyd, Carrie’d one-time fiancé, provided the closing remarks.
James Blunt wrote a song for the occasion — he was a close friend of Carrie’s, close enough that he chose her to be the godmother of his child.
In an earlier interview, Todd said that “The last lyric in the song, it’s a beautiful song, is ‘I’m here to let you know. I’m here to let you go."”
“And it’s powerful.”
Todd’s also explained that he wanted to hold a special service for the public because “That’s how my mother would want it.”
He explained that “She was very connected to her fans and felt they were part of her, so we’re opening it to the public.”
After the memorial service, fans were able to visit Debbie and Carrie’s graves.
What an incredible loss, but still, what a touching tribute to these two legendary ladies.
