‘SUDDEN AND HEARTBREAKING’

‘Finding Prince Charming’ Star Dies Suddenly at 42

Chad Spodick appeared on the reality dating show in 2016.

Chad Spodick, an alum of the 2016 reality dating competition series Finding Prince Charming, has died. He was 42. Spodick’s friend, Kate Werbowski, confirmed the news by launching a GoFundMe page to cover his funeral costs and living expenses for his family. “Our hearts are shattered,” wrote Werbowski. “His passing was sudden and heartbreaking, and we are still struggling to comprehend a world without his light.” She did not reveal his cause of death. Spodick, a realtor and later flight attendant, appeared on the only season of Logo’s Finding Prince Charming, a Bachelor-inspired reality series hosted by Lance Bass in which 13 gay men vied to date an eligible suitor. He quit the competition two episodes before the finale amid a growing controversy after it was revealed that the season’s bachelor, Robert Sepúlveda Jr., had concealed his past as an escort. Spodick later claimed that his association with the show had cost him his real estate job and that Sepúlveda had continued to pursue him after he left. Werbowski remembered Spodick as “the type of person who poured himself into others.” “He lifted up his friends, encouraged everyone around him to grow, to advocate for themselves, and to believe in their own worth,” she added. “The world was brighter with Chad in it, and those who were lucky enough to know him felt the warmth of his heart every day.” Spodick is survived by his mother, Felice, his four dogs, and his bird, Cosmo.