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Alex Trebek’s Widow Jean Is ‘So Grateful’ to Spend Some Quality Time with Her Kids

On Monday (January 31st) Jean Trebek, the wife of late Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek, took to her Instagram with snapshots of her enjoying quality time with her children. 

In the post, Alex Trebek’s wife declares, “So grateful to spend time with two of my most favorite people in the world!” 

Alex Trebek married Jean in 1990. The couple had two children, Matthew and Emily. In March 2019, Jean and Alex were hit with devastating news. The Jeopardy! host was diagnosed with stage IV pancreatic cancer. He announced the news during one episode of the game show. He said that while his prognosis was “poor,” he would aggressively fight the cancer in hopes of beating the odds. 

Unfortunately, on November 8, 2020, Alex Trebek passed away. Jean previously spoke about Jeopardy! host on the anniversary of his death in November 2021. “My beloved husband passed away one year ago… one of his final messages was that of the importance of having compassion for each other.”

Alex Trebek Admitted He Didn’t Tell Jean About His Cancer Diagnosis As Quickly As He Could Have

During an interview with ABC News, Alex Trebek spoke about how he first told Jean about his cancer diagnosis. He admitted that he didn’t tell her as quickly as he should about the diagnosis because it was not devastating news to him. “Throughout my life, I’ve always wondered about how courageous a human being I was. I just look at it as it’s part of life. Does that mean I’m courageous because I’m dealing with it? No. I could be scared to death and I’d still have to deal with it.”

Alex Trebek went on to explain his observations of Jean taking care of him throughout his cancer treatments. “It’s always tough for caretakers because she has to deal with her worrying about my well-being and also dealing with… I’m not always the most pleasant person to be around when I’m experiencing pain or depression. And she has to tread lightly around me.”

While he didn’t know how much time he had left to live, Alex Trebek explained that the prayers and support of fans helped him feel better. One thing he learned out of the situation, no one really knows how when they are going to die. “Because of the cancer diagnosis, it’s no longer an open-ended life. It’s a closed-ended life. Because of something terrible… survival rates of pancreatic cancer. Because of that, and something else that is operating here, people all over America and abroad have decided they want to let me know now, while I’m alive, about the impact that I’ve been having on their existence.”