It has been nearly half a year since beloved Grease star Olivia Newton-John lost her battle with breast cancer, but her grieving husband John Easterling will always remember her as the “most courageous and compassionate woman” he has ever met.
On Saturday, January 28, the 70-year-old businessman reflected on his loss and the love he shared with the Grammy winner, as he took to the stage at the 20th anniversary G’Day USA Arts Gala in Los Angeles.
“Olivia and I unexpectedly, madly, deeply, forever fell in love in the Amazon rainforest,” he started his speech.
“For the past 15 years, I’ve been blessed to share the depth and the passion of her being. Every day with Olivia was a bit of magic. Every day with Olivia was supernatural
“She was the most courageous and compassionate woman that I’ve ever known, with a calming capacity to genuinely care about other people.”
Easterling then went on to speak about his wife’s efforts in providing affordable, alternative treatments for cancer in her research centres both in America and Australia.
According to Hello, the Grease star had once called her Wellness Centres her “dream,” saying she was “thrilled” to have been able to build “a place that supports the people” who are going through cancer.
Easterling ended his speech by saying, “there’s an old adage that like attracts like, and Olivia knew that her voice and her huge profile of talents were a gift. Her legacy continues as a joyful, healing spirit who is continuously focused on moving things, in her words, ‘into the love and the light'”.
Easterling wasn’t Newton-John’s only loved one in attendance at the Gala, her only daughter Chloe Lattanzi also made an appearance.
While the 37-year-old left the evening’s speeches to her step-father, Lattanzi has kept her mother’s memory alive in more ways than one.
Since Newton-John’s death, Lattanzi has been very candid about her grief. Often sharing her emotions on social media with throwback photos of her and her late mum, alongside gut-wrenching captions.
Lattanzi has also vowed to “carry the torch” for her mum to find holistic treatments to “put an end to all the suffering cancer causes for countless beings around the planet.”
She is now officially working alongside her cousin Tottie Goldsmith, who is a goodwill ambassador for the treatment centre, and the expert specialists to continue to provide access to world-class treatments for Australians battling cancer.