Sylvester “Cully” Union Jr., the father of Gabrielle Union, has passed away. He was 81.
On Friday, April 3, Gabrielle confirmed her father’s passing in a touching tribute on Instagram.
“No matter how much you think you know about dementia, nothing prepares you for the painfully slow disappearing of your loved one,” Gabrielle wrote. “First it’s repeating words or forgetting little things here or there, then BOOM, he can’t swallow or walk.”
“First, it’s repeating words or forgetting little things here or there. Then BOOM, he can’t swallow or walk. The them that you know gets smaller and smaller,” she continued. “You hold out hope for sustained eye contact or a smile; even a hand squeeze can make you feel like they could come back to you “normal” at any second. It’s brutal, and it’s what he experienced, but it wasn’t who he was.”
GABRIELLE SAID HER FATHER “NEVER MET A STRANGER’
Gabrielle remembered her father as someone who never “never met a stranger.”
“Through every step of his life, my Dad was surrounded by love and support from his ever-growing village. I swear he never met a stranger, just friends he hadn’t met yet,” she wrote. “A lifelong, die-hard Nebraska fan, he taught me the values of teamwork, a fierce work ethic, and that you are only as strong as your weakest link, so tend to them first.’
After he was diagnosed with dementia years ago, her father was placed in memory care in 2023.
“It’s bewildering to feel relief that the pain has ended. But profound heartbreak at the finality of his time. I know I’m not the first or last Daddy’s girl to go through this,” wrote Gabrielle. ‘And I’m sending love and healing to anyone suffering the loss of a parent. I know his love is eternal and will find me in every realm.”
“You know, nursing homes, what’s covered by insurance, what’s not, home health aids — like that all adds up, and having to really be cognizant of an additional output, I have to go where the money goes.”