John Schneider Leans on ‘Promise Of God’ After Wife’s Death: ‘Heaven is Real’
By Movieguide® Contributor
Actor and musician John Schneider is leaning on his faith as he mourns his wife, Alicia Allain Schneider, who died earlier this year.
“If it weren’t for my faith, if it weren’t for my belief, absolute belief that God is real. Heaven is real. The promise of God that Alicia and I will see each other again forever. If it weren’t for that, I think I would have jumped off a bridge,” Schneider explained to Fox News.
He shared that his grandmother “instilled [belief in heaven] in me with one very brief conversation. I was about 8 years old, and she said, ‘Johnny, one of these days, I’m not going to be here anymore, but don’t worry, I’ll be with Jesus and you will see me again.’”
The DUKES OF HAZZARD star continued, “This has been instilled in me for my whole life. But just that simply when you die, you will see those that you love again. That’s pretty simple. I’m pretty simple, so I take that at face value. So, when I tell people that, I believe immediately after my last breath here will be my first breath there. And it will be Alicia’s hand I’ll be holding.”
“I look forward to that day,” Schneider shared. “And I tell people, you know, I can’t wait to get there, but I will. I will wait. I also believe jumping off a bridge is a sin that would keep me from actually seeing Alicia again. So, I won’t do that. I absolutely won’t do that. But I understand the level of grief, sadly, that people go through. So, they need this kind of encouragement. We need this kind of encouragement and assurance that it’s all real.”
The actor shared some words of encouragement for others grieving the loss of a loved one, reminding them that “this is a temporary situation.”
“Your love has been put on pause. Your love has not been stopped. Your love has not been discarded. It has been put on pause,” Schneider explained. “Be patient. You’ll get there, and they will be waiting.”
Movieguide® previously reported on Alicia’s death:
DUKES OF HAZZARD star John Schneider confirmed that his wife, Alicia Allain, has died at 53 years old.
Schneider released a statement about his wife’s passing via Instagram on February 22, writing, “My beautiful Smile is pain free, living in her new body alongside Jesus.”
The actor didn’t reveal Allain’s cause of death, but both he and his wife had been very open about her battle with cancer.
In 2020, the couple shared that Allain had been diagnosed with stage 4 HER2-negative cancer.
Schneider spoke about his connection with Alicia in an interview with People.
“We were kindred spirits from the beginning and made everything look easy,” he shared. “My whole life I’ve never had any relationship that I didn’t want to take an occasional break from, but with her, I didn’t want to be on the other side of a small room.”
He is also focused on continuing the work they did together, including making music. Schneider plans to release an album in tribute to her and their previous musical collaborations.
Schneider said he is “very proud” of how the album, “We’re Still Us,” has turned out but admitted it was a hard process.
“I do believe it’s helpful, but honestly, I don’t see a time where this doesn’t hurt like hell,” he explained. “It hurt so bad to write. It hurt so bad to sing. But the final product is going to be healing for those who are going through this.”
