Duane Chapman Promises to Make Late Wife Beth ‘Proud’ at Emotional Memorial: ‘She Will Never Be Dead to Me’

Her memory will live on with him forever! Duane “Dog” Chapman took the stage at a second memorial for his late wife Beth Chapman on July 13, and his message was clear: she will always live on in his heart.

WGN America streamed the entire emotional event — which took place at the Heritage Christian Center in Aurora — on Facebook, so fans could join in the celebration of Beth’s life. 66-year-old Dog’s pain was evident in his heartbreaking speech. “I cannot believe that she’s gone,” he said, tearfully. “This is not possible, I want to wake up from a dream.”

“She will never be dead to me. She is in another place,” he went on, revealing he will still continue the family business and TV show without her. “I’m gonna get to heaven and make her so proud. She’s gonna say, like she said here, ‘That’s my man right there, that’s big daddy right there.’” He believes Beth will still help them out from above, calling her their “angelic drone” on the hunt. In one of their last conversations, Dog admitted Beth was ready to move on to “another place,” but he wasn’t ready to let her.

“She lost a lot of weight, she was down to 119 [lbs.]. She said, ‘Please big daddy, please let me go.’ I said, ‘No, I can’t. I’m not gonna let you go.’ I still haven’t let her go,” he promised. “If there’s a God, He won’t let me live that long without her.” He also begged fans to cherish their loved ones, saying, “If you’re beefin’ with your old lady, stop and kiss her right now. Because you’re gonna feel so bad when he or her are not with you anymore.”

Dog and Beth’s daughter Bonnie also took the stage, and her testimony was even more heartwrenching than her father’s. “I’ve never imagined I would lose my mom at 20,” she began. “I never imagined walking down the aisle without her or her not judging my dress. I never imagined a life without her, it’s really tough now being without her,” she said. “I’m so thankful she was able to share her life and our family’s life with all of you. The world isn’t going to be the same without my mother.” Our hearts go out to this beautiful family as they continue to heal.