Alex Trebek's wife Jean celebrates first Christmas since 'Jeopardy' host's death: 'Time is too precious'
Jean Trebek, the wife of late Jeopardy host Alex Trebek, marked her first Christmas since his death by spreading wisdom.
“Time is too precious to be spent on anything other than kindness,” she wrote on Instagram, under a photo of the couple’s two children, Emily and Matthew. “Many blessings of beauty and joy to you and all you hold dear!”
The 80-year-old television host died on Nov. 8 after a diagnosis of stage 4 pancreatic cancer, amid Season 37 of the popular game show. “[I’ve lived] a full life, and I’m nearing the end of that life ... if it happens, why should I be afraid that?” Alex told CTV in October. “One thing they’re not going to say at my funeral, as a part of a eulogy, is, ‘He was taken from us too soon.’”
His death provoked love from fans, celebrities and colleagues, including Wheel of Fortune co-hosts Pat Sajak and Vanna White and Ryan Reynolds. Days after her husband’s passing, Jean gave thanks for the “compassionate messages and generosity” on Instagram, sharing a photo from her 1990 wedding.
A copy of Alex’s death certificate, which was obtained by The Blast, revealed that he was cremated and his ashes were stored in the Studio City, Calif. home that he shared with his wife.
In July, Alex said his wife was instrumental in holding their family together. "She's kept me alive. If it weren’t for Jean, I’d have put myself out of this a long time ago,” he told People.
The couple was introduced by a mutual friend in 1988, though Alex, then 47, wasn’t sure about dating someone 24 years younger. "At first it worried me,” he told the outlet the year he married Jean. “But then I thought, ‘To hell with it. We’ll make it work.'”
Months before his death, Jean, who practices sound and energy healing, raised awareness for pancreatic cancer by sharing Alex’s early symptoms in an essay for Guideposts, calling life with her husband “a gift.”
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