News

Actions

Country star’s widow: ‘It’s all in God’s hands’

Posted at 6:42 PM, Jan 07, 2016
and last updated 2016-01-07 18:42:36-05

The wife of late country singer Craig Stickland remembers the last time she saw her husband.

They had spread out on a couch and shared the sorts of small, sweet moments that make up a marriage.

They talked about Harry Potter and sang songs about their cat, Salem.

“God really gave us an opportunity to be happier than we’d ever been,” Helen Strickland told CNN’s Brooke Baldwin on Thursday.

When the time came for him to leave, Strickland said her husband looked at her and said: “I love you.”

“He blew me a kiss, and said ‘I’ll talk to you soon,’ and he walked out.”

Craig Strickland, a 29-year-old vocalist in the country rock band Backroad Anthem, was duck hunting with his friend Chase Morland late last month at Oklahoma’s Kaw Lake during a powerful winter storm.

They went missing and were later found dead. The friends’ boat had apparently overturned.

“I think everybody sharing their love for Craig and telling us how much they loved him helps us get through this really difficult time,” said Strickland.

“It’s all in God’s hands, and there’s a reason for all of this and instead of letting it hurt us, we’re going to try to do something good.”