Sunny Ozell is speaking out for the first time about the death of her husband, Sir Patrick Stewart.
The 47-year-old widow shared a black-and-white image of her and Stewart in a Nov. 11 Instagram post along with an emotional tribute marking two weeks since the "Star Trek" actor's death
. In her post, the singer-songwriter said that her "grief continues to come in waves" but not without "deep, profound gratitude.""We left nothing unsaid," she wrote. "He knew I loved him, and I know he loved me."
Ozell wrote that she and Stewart brought out the best in each other over nearly two decades together.
"Patrick and I truly, authentically saw one another, and we amplified each other's best qualities. We shared nearly two decades together, and we filled
those years with so much *living*," she wrote. "I've been overwhelmed by the public response to Patrick's death, and while I'm not at all surprised that he touched so many, I'm sincerely moved by the outpouring of sadness and loss."
She concluded, "Thank you all for your condolences, they mean so, so much to me. My heart had to grow to contain my love for Patrick, and he changed me for the better, forever."
The "X-Men" actor died Oct. 28 at his home in Los Angeles, where Ozell cared for him. He was 86.
A statement shared to Stewart's Instagram account the next day disclosed that he had been living with Alzheimer's disease and Lewy body dementia.
Sunny Ozell and Patrick Stewart's marriage
Ozell was waiting tables at a Brooklyn restaurant in 2008 when she met Stewart. She wanted to see him in "Macbeth," so he gave her his number. She came backstage after a performance and agreed to have dinner with him that night, Stewart told London's Evening Standard in 2014. He heard Ozell sing for the first time a couple of weeks later.
Ian McKellen, Stewart's longtime friend and "X-Men" costar, officiated at their September 2013 wedding. Stewart announced the news with a photo of the newlyweds in a ball pit. "Yes, married," he wrote.
McKellen praised Ozell in his Instagram tribute to Stewart, thanking her for caring for his longtime friend "through sickness and health, through thick and thin."
Patrick Stewart's family life and children
Stewart and his first wife, actress and dancer Sheila Falconer, had two children, Daniel and Sophie. They divorced in 1990 after 24 years of marriage. His second marriage, to television producer Wendy Neuss, lasted from 2000 to 2003.Stewart spoke about his estrangement from his adult children in a 2023 interview with the Irish Independent, describing their relationship as "practically non-existent."
"I always put my acting work first, before my family,” he said.
Contributing: Liza Esquibias, Bryan Alexander, Paris Close, USA TODAY
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Patrick Stewart's widow Sunny Ozell breaks silence on his death at 86
