Fans still can’t get over the fact that the legendary Betty White died on December 31, just a few weeks shy of her one hundredth birthday. But now White’s team is giving her followers a little treat by releasing a video message that the “Golden Girls” alum recorded right before she passed.
“I just want to thank you all for your love and support over the years,” White says in the video. “Thank you so much.”
The beloved actress added at the end, “Stick around.”
It was recorded as part of White’s birthday celebration for January 17 and would have debuted on her social media page that day. The “Mary Tyler Moore” show alum’s team explained the video with their accompanying post.
“She was using the occasion of her 100th birthday to celebrate YOU – her fans,” the post read. “She knew how lucky she was; she felt the love, and she never took it for granted.”
The social update also thanked fans for donating to animal shelters in White’s honor for the occasion of her birthday. This movement was inspired by her love of animals and started the #BettyWhiteChallenge trending.
“It’s just absolutely amazing how much money all of you raised for the animals through #thebettywhitechallenge. She could never have imagined such an outpouring of love and would have been so grateful to everyone,” the post continued.
Finally, White’s team called the final video release “a thank from Betty and the animals.”
The eight-time Emmy winner began her career in the late 1930s, meaning she had the longest television career of any entertainer in history. She is best known “for her scene-stealing roles in two pioneering sitcoms — as the promiscuous cooking show host Sue Ann Nivens on the ‘The Mary Tyler Moore Show’ in the 1970s and sweet-natured simpleton Rose Nylund on ‘The Golden Girls’ in the 80s,” Page Six reported.
White was known for being upbeat, positive, and happy, which came through in all the roles she played in film and on television. During a recent interview, the “Golden Girls” star told People that her jovial personality came from being “born a cockeyed optimist.”
“I got it from my mom, and that never changed,” White said. “I always find the positive.”
The interviewer asked if she had any diet advice for living into old age, and White joked that she tried “to avoid anything green.”
She also said, “I’m so lucky to be in such good health and feel so good at this age. It’s amazing.”
The actress’s cause of death was revealed as a stroke, which she suffered six days before passing.
One feat White accomplished, which is so rare these days, is that she was popular across both sides of the political aisle. Her death inspired public figures from President Biden and Nancy Pelosi to former press secretary Kayleigh McEnany and Kirstie Alley to post public tributes on their social media accounts.
Even people who agreed on nothing else had to admit that Betty White was a national treasure.