Experiencing the loss of someone we care about can be a life-changing event. It can also be extremely difficult for the one who is dying, so being there for them is important.
When American Pickers star Frank Fritz passed away in September, his close friend and costar, Mike Wolfe was there by his side. He even said that he was holding Frank’s hand when he ‘took his last breath.’
Fritz died from stroke complications at the age of 60 in September. He has done many things in life, but he was best known for the antique and collectibles show he hosted between 2010 and 2020.
After his passing, Wolfe went on Instagram to give an announcement. It read: “It’s with a broken heart that I share with all of you that Frank passed away last night.
“I’ve know Frank for more than half my life and what you’ve seen on TV has always been what I have seen, a dreamer who was just as sensitive as he was funny. The same off camera as he was on, Frank had a way of reaching the hearts of so many by just being himself.
“Who would have ever dreamed we would share the cockpit of a white cargo van in front of millions of people interested in our adventures.”
Wolfe also recently gave an interview in which she said he felt like the ‘last man standing’ after his good friend left American Pickers.
He went on to say: “I was just kind of left to fend for myself in a lot of ways. I could finish his sentences. He could finish my sentences.”
He did speak about Fritz and his struggle with addiction during his final years. He tried to help him, even taking part in an intervention at one point with Fritz’s family.
He added: “I remember running into him like a month later. He said he was just going to handle everything on his own, and I asked him how he was doing. He said, ‘I’m fine. I’m fine. No, I’m really fine.’ And then like a month later, he was gone.”
Although they remain friends, they did have some strain on their relationship over the years but they never fully disconnected from each other. That is what allowed Fritz to be holding his friend’s hand when he took his last breath.
Wolfe said: “I got the call that he wasn’t doing well. I just feel blessed that I was able to get there.
“I was there for about an hour before he passed, and I was holding his hand and rubbing his chest when he took his last breath. I took my fingers and I closed his eyes.”
He also got some closure at that time. He said: “I just told him that I wasn’t mad at him and that I loved him and that I cared about him so much.
“And then when I could see that he was struggling, I just said, ‘Just go find your mom. Go find her right now. Just go find her.'”
