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Charvarius Ward said that he hasn’t “been happy” since the death of his daughter AmaniReflecting on what would have been his daughter’s third birthday, the cornerback shared a heartbreaking message on his Instagram StoriesWard welcomed his daughter with girlfriend Monique Cook
Charvarius Ward is still grieving the loss of his daughter.
In several posts on his Instagram Stories, the Indianapolis Colts cornerback, 29, shared that he hasn’t “been happy” since the death of his daughter Amani Joy in October 2024. Ward shared a series of pictures of his little girl to commemorate what would have been her third birthday.
In text over the first image, which showed her sitting down on the carpet, he wrote “Happy heavenly birthday Amani 👼🏽 Haven’t been happy since you left us. God was wrong for this 💔.”
Charvarius Ward Instagram Stories.
Charvarius Ward/instagram
In the posts that followed, Ward included another snap of his daughter from her birthday in 2022 and a picture of the two together in front of the football stadium. He concluded his posts and shared how “lost” he is without his daughter.
“F— football. F— this money. F— any type of fame. Don’t care for none of it. Lost without my baby,” he wrote. “Amani Joy Ward XOXOXO.”
Last October, Ward announced that his daughter, whom he welcomed with girlfriend Monique Cook, died. Sharing a photo of his daughter on his Instagram, Ward wrote that his family is “heartbroken” as they process the tragic news.
“We are heartbroken that our beautiful baby girl, Amani Joy passed away on Monday morning. She was the best blessing we could have asked for, and her joyous spirit made us smile from ear to ear,” Ward wrote in the caption. “She taught us to have patience, trust, and a positive outlook on life. She showed us true strength and bravery. She overcame adversity at a young age and was always happy, lighting up every room with her smile.”
He went on to write, “Having the privilege of being her parents and seeing the world through her eyes has changed us for the better. She will forever be daddy’s best friend and mommy’s little girl. We’ll miss you and love you forever, Amani Joy.”
Charvarius Ward and daughter Amani.
Charvarius Ward/instagram
In January, Ward shared that he isn’t sure he wants to stay in California, saying that his family’s been through a lot of “trauma” over this past year.
“I’ve got a lot of trauma in California,” he shared to reporters in front of his locker. “I had a lot of great times, but the worst thing that’s ever happened to me, that’s probably going to ever happen to me — knock on wood — happened in California. It can just bring up bad memories. Every time I get on a plane and come back to California, Santa Clara, San Jose, and show up here, it just brings up bad memories.”
“I go through that every day,” he continued. “I go home every night by myself because my girl, she doesn’t want to come back to California because of what happened. So, it is hard being alone, and she’s my strength right now. I need her, and so her not being able to be around me if I’m in California, it’d be tough.”
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The athlete shared that he still suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of his daughter’s death.
“I get PTSD a lot,” he said. “I be throwing up, waking up in the middle of the night all the time, sweating and stuff like that. It’s tough, it’s tough. But, you know, we’ll see how it goes. It’s going to be interesting for sure.”