Diem Brown was laid to rest on Tuesday at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church in New York City, surrounded by her friends, family and former Challenge co-stars.
Brown died tragically last week on Friday, November 14, after a years-long battle with cancer. Over the summer, as reported by the Inquisitr , Brown, who beat cancer twice in years prior, was diagnosed with the devastating disease for a third time.
According to a November 18 report by Us Weekly , Brown’s funeral service was attended by her on-again, off-again boyfriend, Chris “CT” Tamburello, Evan Starkman, Kenny Santucci, Mark Long, Johanna Botta, Ace Amerson, Paula Meronek, KellyAnne Judd, Ruthie Alcaide, Aneesa Ferriera, Laurel Stuckey, Cara Maria Sorbello and Johnny “Bananas” Devenanzio.
According to the Inquisitr , Tamburello had been by Diem Brown’s side in the months leading up to her passing. During a visit to her hospital room , Tamburello shared a photo of himself sleeping as he held Brown’s hand. In the caption he wrote, “Sometimes just being there for someone can be the difference between a good and bad day.”
“Brown’s casket was brought into the church to the tune of the hymn ‘On Eagle’s Wings,’” Us Weekly reported. “Pallbearers included her brother Jarrod Brown, uncle Allen Brown, cousin Joey Brown, Jeff Clarke (her sister Megan’s boyfriend), Mike Ross (the husband of her best friend Alicia Quarles), and Sasan Soleimani. Photos of Brown’s warm face, nestled beside those of her family and friends, were posted throughout the church.”
During the funeral, country singer Trisha Yearwood performed and Father Peter Fink and Pastor Kane Keatinge of NYC’s Hillsong Church addressed mourners. Two of the reality star’s friends, Julie Rotondi and Erin Robbins, read Proverbs 3:1-7 and Corinthians 4:16-18, and Quarles said the Prayer of the Faithful. After the funeral ended, a video of Brown’s life, including moments from her college days and time on The Challenge , flashed across TV screens.
On the back of Brown’s funeral program, Proverbs 31:25 read, “She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future.” Below the verse, a message from Brown’s family stated, “Our dancing angel, Danielle Marie Brown, is watching from Heaven’s window with her mother, Jillian Catherine Brown.”
Instead of flowers, Brown’s family requested mourners donate to MedGift , which has currently raised over $80,000 of its $100,000 goal.
In one of her last tweets, which was posted three days before her death, Diem Brown wrote , “I need prayers and advice my doctors are seemingly giving up but I won’t & can’t rollover. Whatever option I have to LIVE I’m grabbing!”
[Photo via Twitter ]