Eddie Van Halen’s Ex-Wife Valerie Bertinelli Leads Celeb Tributes From Bandmates & More Following His Death

J.W.

Following Eddie Van Halen‘s death on Tuesday, there has been an outpouring of condolences online in his honor, including many from those who knew him best.

The Van Halen co-founder passed away in Santa Monica surrounded by his loved ones following a difficult battle with cancer for many years, which recently took a turn for the worse. He was only 65.

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Valerie Bertinelli, who tied the knot with the rocker in 1981 before separating in 2001 and getting divorced in 2007, had nothing but kind words to share for her “love.” Along with a throwback photo of herself, Eddie, and their son Wolfgang Van Halen, the Hot in Cleveland actress penned on Twitter:

“40 years ago my life changed forever when I met you. You gave me the one true light in my life, our son, Wolfgang. Through all your challenging treatments for lung cancer, you kept your gorgeous spirit and that impish grin.”

She concluded (below), alluding to being present at the time of his passing:

“I’m so grateful Wolfie and I were able to hold you in your last moments. I will see you in our next life my love.”

Such beautiful words! It’s clear that despite being divorced, there was a lot of love there. As we previously reported, Bertinelli first expressed her heartbreak by tweeting a response to her son’s initial statement:

On Wednesday morning, Eddie’s current wife, Janie Liszewski, wrote:

“My husband, my love, my Peep,
My heart and soul have been shattered into a million pieces. I never knew it was possible to cry so many tears or feel such incredible sadness. Our journey together has not always been an easy one but in the end and always we have a connection and love that will always be. Saying goodbye is the hardest thing I have ever had to do so instead I say so long, I will see you again soon in a place with no pain or sorrow. Please watch over Kody and I. We love you and miss you so very much.
Love, your PooPee”

David Lee Roth, a founding group member who left the band in 1985, shared a sweet black and white snap of the two appearing to get ready for a performance. Along with it were the words, “What a Long Great Trip It’s Been..,” seemingly referring to the Grateful Dead album with a similar title.

Sammy Hagar, who took over on vocals following Roth’s departure, also shared a snap of himself and Eddie to Twitter:

A source spoke with People, noting the artist’s “rapid decline” over the last several days:

“During the quarantine, everyone around Eddie was even more cautious about his health and his family truly protected him. He had throat cancer for years but it spread — it was in all his organs. The last three days it was a rapid decline. Sadly, the hard-partying lifestyle physically takes its toll on you eventually.”

Lenny Kravitz also shared a tribute with the outlet on Tuesday:

“He changed music. He changed the perception of the electric guitar. He did things with the electric guitar that no one did — he is a pioneer and I mean, the music so incredible.”

Take a look at more posts in honor of the rocker (below).

 

We’re sending our continued condolences to all of Eddie’s family, friends, and loved ones.

[Image via Ray Garbo/Rachel Worth/Chris Connor/WENN.]

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