Tyler Duckworth’s friends, family and former co-stars– including Johnny “Bananas” Devenanzio– gathered Saturday to say their goodbyes to ‘The Challenge’ star, who died August 11 at the age of 44.
According to Page Six, Tyler’s memorial was held at the Augustana Lutheran Church in Grand Forks, North Dakota. While the memorial was private, Tyler’s ‘The Real World: Key West’ co-star Johnny shared a series of photos taken at the service, where he also reportedly said a few words about his late friend and former roommate.
Among Johnny’s carousel of photos was also a snapshot of a tropical floral arrangement surrounding a photo of ‘The Real World: Key West’ cast.
“Tyler, you are the joy that will live in our hearts,” the message accompanying the arrangement read. “With Love, Your RW Key West Family.”
Also in attendance on Saturday to celebrate Tyler’s life were ‘Real World: Key West’ star Jose Tapia and Tina Barta of ‘The Challenge,’ both of whom were photographed at Tyler’s service alongside Johnny, Tyler’s mom Jodi, and others.
“Lights will guide you home,” Johnny captioned his post. “And I hope wherever they lead you, you know how deeply you were loved, and how much of you we’ll carry with us forever. Rest easy, brother.”
As The Ashley reported earlier this month, Tyler was found unresponsive in the bathroom of his North Dakota apartment on August 11. According to People, the two-time ‘Challenge’ champ was discovered after his downstairs neighbor called 911 to report that water was seeping through their ceiling and coming from Tyler’s apartment. When cops entered Tyler’s place, they found that the source of water was Tyler’s bathtub.
Tyler’s mother, Jodi, went on to confirm the sad news of her son’s passing on Facebook. Days later, she shared a tribute to Tyler, telling People that her son “has now gone on to a better place where the hurt and challenges (pun intended) are no longer.”
While a witness reportedly saw Tyler the day before he was found dead, Page Six reports that the Grand Forks Police Department is unclear at this time as to how long Tyler had been deceased when his body was discovered. Tyler had also recently undergone surgery, though it’s unknown if that contributed to his death. An autopsy and toxicology report will be done to determine Tyler’s cause of death, though the results may not be back for several months.
As you know, despite not appearing on ‘The Challenge’ since 2021, Tyler remained active in ‘The Challenge’ fan space, frequently appearing on show podcasts and at fan events. On August 2, he attended a “Challenge Mania” event in his hometown of Minneapolis alongside show vets like Tina, Mark Long and Brad Fiorenza.
“So proud to represent my hometown of Minneapolis along with these other challenge legends,” Tyler later posted about the event.
Last week, Bunim/Murray Productions posted a tribute video to social media, featuring some of Tyler’s best moments from ‘The Real World’ and ‘The Challenge.’ You can watch the full video– which has since been reposted by some of Tyler’s former castmates– below.
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(Photos: MTV; Instagram)
