Hailey Merkt, a Bachelor graduate, has died after a long battle with leukemia.
She was 31 years old.
It was confirmed that she had died in a post on her personal Instagram page after she had died.
With a picture of Hailey, the post said that she had died on July 26.
“It is with broken hearts we share that our beloved Hailey has passed away after a courageous fight for her life,” it said.
“Hailey was unbelievably strong, graceful, and selfless on this journey.” Her courage, determination, and will to live went beyond every time frame the doctors gave her. She chose to spend her last moments with family and friends doing the things she loved most, with no regrets.
The post said nice things about Hailey, like how she was “ever so funny, never dull, and fully in the present moment.”
“Hailey embraced life with an unmatched zest; her beautiful spirit has touched countless lives,” the caption said.
“Hailey will be deeply missed by all who knew her,” the post said next. Without a doubt, her love, laughter, and lively spirit will always be with us. Even though we’re sad about her death, we know that her spirit will live on in everyone she touched.
“Rest in peace, Hailey.”
A GoFundMe page has been set up to help Hailey’s family deal with their loss.
More than $112,208 has been raised through the page, which will stay open until August 10.
Fans of The Bachelor first met Hailey in Season 21 of the show in 2017, when she competed for Nick Viall’s heart.
During the second week of the competition, she was kicked off.
THINKING OF HAILEY
“Your laugh makes me feel so lucky, and I’m thankful to have met the kindest, most beautiful person in the strangest places.” Always thankful for the friendship you’ve given me there and in real life…. What a force, my girl. Don’t worry. Danielle Maltby, who was on the same season of The Bachelor as her, wrote in a comment on the post about her death, “So much love to all your people.”
“Oh my goodness!” This makes me so sad. I really hoped she would get better. Hailey, take it easy. Raven Gates wrote, “You’ll never be forgotten.”
“I’m grateful to have known and talked with such a truly lovely and strong person.” Violet Stern wrote, “Hailey, I will never forget you.”
“I hope you are in a beautiful, peaceful place, my love.” Dominique Alexis wrote, “I can’t believe I won’t see you again, but I’ll treasure every memory.”
WHAT HAILEY DID
Hailey was honest about her battle with leukemia on the Internet.
She told people in April that she was “leukemia free,” which gave them hope.
Things got worse after only three months, though.
“After the bone marrow transplant had taken, she was told she had nine months to not even think about cancer, but in truth she only had 6 weeks before she got the terrible news that leukemia cells were back and moving fast,” a GoFundMe update said.
“Her first reaction was to say, ‘I don’t care about myself anymore, but I can’t bear being the cause of so much pain for the people I love.”
Hailey posted pictures and videos of her progress and setbacks during her battle with cancer.
She shared a picture of herself smiling while getting treatment in October 2023 and said it was a “rare moment.”
Before she made that post, her feed was full of selfies, dog pictures, modeling photos, and glimpses into her daily life.
