Eldridge Toney, the widower of Mama June Shannon’s late daughter Anna ‘Chickadee’ Cardwell, is engaged to be married.
The news comes two years after his wife Cardwell died from adrenal carcinoma at age 29.
Toney and his fiancée Jessie English began dating in March, after meeting via the dating app Tinder.
‘I wasn’t going to make a profile, but something was telling me to,’ he told Us Weekly.
English has reportedly already been introduced to Cardwell’s two daughters, Kaitlyn, 13, and Kylee, 10, both of whom are from previous relationships, as well as her other family members.
‘She has met Anna’s family and they like her a lot. We go over for holidays and times in between to see Kaitlyn,’ Toney shared. ‘Kaitlyn loves her, and that is something that sits great with me. She has also met Kylee, who also loves Jessie.’
Eldridge Toney, Mama June Shannon’s late daughter Anna ‘Chickadee’ Cardwell’s widower, is engaged to be married again, according to Us Weekly
The news comes two years after his wife Cardwell died from adrenal carcinoma at age 29
Amid the marriage plans, Toney — who married Cardwell in March 2023 — continues to grieve his late wife.
English ‘respects my past and the things I have dealt with 100 percent. She knows I have good days and bad days when it comes to missing Anna, and she is extremely supportive,’ he explained.
He also told Us Weekly: ‘Our future together is bright from what we have talked about and how things are going now.
‘I know a lot of people may say I’m moving on fast, but at the end of the day, Anna wouldn’t want me sitting around in misery.’
The new couple, who have the support of both their families, have not yet chosen a wedding date.
Cardwell was diagnosed with stage 4 adrenal carcinoma cancer in early 2023.
Chemotherapy proved futile for the mother-of-two, who secretly wed Toney in Georgia that March.
She shared her daughter Kaitlyn with her ex Caleb Clark, while her daughter Kylee is from her earlier marriage to Michael Cardwell.
Toney and his fiancée Jessie English began dating in March after meeting via the dating app Tinder. ‘I wasn’t going to make a profile but something was telling me to,’ he told Us Weekly
English has already been introduced to Cardwell’s two daughters, Kaitlyn (pictured; center) and Kylee, as well as her other family members
Cardwell and Toney were raising her daughters, whom she had from two separate relationships, together; pictured in a May 2023 post
Toney got engaged two years after he and Cardwell secretly married; pictured with his fiancée English
In the wake of her death, Mama June was granted custody of Kaitlyn, while Kylee began living with her dad.
Cardwell said in 2021 that she hoped to have a child with Toney, sharing at the time: ‘It’s been a long bumpy road for us trying to have baby number three.’
Following her death, Toney opened up about his wife’s final moments in an interview with People.
He recalled the family gathering around her to say goodbye, and said ‘everyone was crying and freaking out, because we all knew what was happening.’
‘I did my best to be calm for her. I rubbed my hands through her hair, held her hand and told her it was going to be OK,’ Toney remembered. ‘I was holding her hand when she took her final breath.’
‘The day before she passed, we had our talk and said our goodbyes. Her dying wish was for her girls to grow up knowing who their mother was,’ he shared.
‘And I promised I would do right by the girls always. I will spend my life doing right by Anna and the girls,’ the widower vowed.
