Angie Jakusz, the best-known “Survivor” contestant, has died after a three-year battle with cancer. He was 40 years old.
She died Friday in the New Orleans area, but the official cause of her death has not yet been announced, TMZ reported. A funeral service was held Wednesday afternoon in Metairie, Louisiana.
A recently launched GoFundMe page in her name revealed that she had been diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma, a rare form of colorectal cancer. Starting Thursday morning, the crowd-sourcing campaign raised $ 255 from its $ 30,000 goal.
Born Cassandra Anne Jakusz in Waukesha, Wisconsin, she later spent time in San Francisco and New York before moving permanently to New Orleans, according to CBS Bio. He worked there as an artist – using watercolors and finding objects – and set up shop in the French Quarter.
Despite her loads of colorful tattoos, Jakusz’s “Survivor” colleagues nicknamed her “No Fun Angie” when she appeared in the 2005 season of the CBS reality TV trailer, which was set in Palau. He competed for the Ulong tribe.
Jakusz, who also starred in the 1998 indie film “Lucinda’s Spell,” actually made a short TV story in “Survivor,” The Sun reported. She was eliminated on the 12th – making her the first contestant to lose during the tribal council voting phase.
Despite her young age – she was only 25 when she did the show – Jakusz quickly became a favorite of her fellow tribesmen and watched the audience alike.
“People have to remember in 2005 – women were not thrown on the ‘Survivor’ with fears and tattoos,” Coby Archa, 48, told People’s Palau contestant. “It simply came to our notice then. Fans have been so attached to her story. And a lot of people wanted to see her play for her strength again. ”
She accumulated solid performance in various challenges of the team, but ended up ranking 13th when she received the boot. Diehard’s fans later saw her at the show’s 10th anniversary party, which aired in 2010.
“I heard from her family three years ago that she is fighting cancer,” Archa told reporters. “I raised some money for her treatments. He was not famous, but only in the experience of the “Survivor.” She came, played and came back to her life in New Orleans. She liked her life that way. ”
Jakusz is survived by her nine-year-old husband, Steven Calandra, and her parents, as well as her brother, niece and nephew.
