By Kayla DeKraker
Bruce Willis’ daughter Rumer Willis spoke about how her dad’s dementia diagnosis brought out his sweet side.
“It will never be the same as it was having a dad and how it is with my mother, [but] I love getting to go over and see him,” she said recently. “I’m so grateful I have a child that got to meet him. I don’t know if my sisters will have that. I’m just so grateful for all the things I do get. I’m so grateful I get to go see him.”
Bruce first stepped away from acting in 2022 after being diagnosed with aphasia, a disorder that affects communication and language abilities. In 2023, his family revealed that his condition had progressed into frontotemporal dementia.
The Mayo Clinic describes the condition as “an umbrella term for a group of brain diseases that mainly affect the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain. These areas of the brain are associated with personality, behavior and language.”
Related: Bruce Willis Doesn’t Know He Has Dementia…and That’s a Good Thing
While Bruce’s health condition created many challenges to his family, Rumer said that it also showed her a new side of her dad.
“He’s always been this kind of macho dude, and now there’s just such a …fragile’s not the right word, but just a tenderness that maybe being Bruce Willis may have not allowed him in some way,” she said.
Rumer also explained how Bruce’s blended family navigates his health struggles together.
“We don’t do it perfectly, but we’re always striving to continue to create connection and find ways to be with each other and support each other through something that is kind of unprecedented,” she said. “It’s wild to me that so many people come up to me and say, ‘My uncle had FTD. My dad had [it],’ and I had no idea how prevalent it was. It’s crazy.”
Because of their family’s journey, Bruce’s wife, Emma Heming Willis, works hard to raise awareness about FTD and what life as a caregiver looks like.
She wrote a book titled The Unexpected Journey: Finding Strength, Hope, and Yourself on the Caregiving Path and started a foundation.
“Today we’re introducing The Emma & Bruce Willis Fund for Dementia Research and Caregiver Support,” Heming Willis announced in March. “Our family’s journey with frontotemporal dementia has opened my eyes to what so many families experience when someone they love is living with this disease.”
She added, “The uncertainty, the challenges, and the incredible strength of the caregivers who show up every day. This fund is our way of helping move things forward by raising FTD awareness, supporting promising research, and standing beside the caregivers who carry so much. I’m grateful to be partnering with @eifoundation to help bring this effort to life.”
Bruce’s health challenges aren’t easy, but he certainly has a wonderful support system around him.
Read Next: Bruce Willis is ‘Stable’ Amid Dementia Fight, Daughter Reveals
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