Celine Dion has paid tribute to her husband René Angélil on the first anniversary of his death.
The music manager passed away on January 14, 2016 after a battle with throat cancer, and exactly one year later, the 48-year-old singer posted a touching video on Facebook to celebrate his life.
She captioned the video: "It’s been a year since René left us. He will always be in our hearts."
The footage started with a picture of René, 73, as a baby and ended with him receiving a kiss from Celine.
René had six children; Patrick, 48, from his first marriage to Denyse Duquette; Jean Pierre, 42, and Anne Marie, 39, from his second marriage to Anne Renée; and René-Charles, 15, and twins Nelson and Eddy, six, with Celine.
And Celine admitted that René’s battle with cancer was tough for the entire family.
She said: "Before he left, it was very, very difficult for all of us. For me especially, and my children, to see the man of my life die a little bit more every day. And when he left, it was kind of a relief for me that the man that I love, the only man that I kissed, the only man that I loved – yeah, I never kissed another man in my life. So, the man of my life was my partner, and we were one. So, when he stopped suffering, I said to myself, ‘He’s OK. And he deserves not to suffer.’"
Speaking before Christmas, Celine admitted she wasn’t ready for the anniversary of his passing.
She explained: "I can’t believe it’s going to be a year that my husband passed. I don’t know when Santa Claus is coming, but if I had a wish to make this year, can you just tell him to take his time? I’m not ready!
"It’s kind of a bittersweet moment and at the same time we need to really make the holidays really happy. I feel thankful that he doesn’t suffer and he doesn’t have to worry because we got him. He got us and the spirit of the holidays will get us together again … We’re going to ski again all together and he will be there with us."
The ‘Think Twice’ hitmaker and her late spouse used to visit the slopes of Montana every festive season until he felt too ill.
Celine Dion’s anniversary tribute to late husband
