In Brief:
- Reality star Aspyn Ovard revealed her young daughter has terminal cancer in the Thursday premiere of Hulu's The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives: Orange County.
- Ovard and ex-husband Parker Ferris learned of the diagnosis over three years ago; a recent scan was stable.
- Ovard, 30, filed for divorce in April 2024 and keeps her daughter's illness private from castmates.
Aspyn Ovard: Reality star Aspyn Ovard has shared devastating news. Her young daughter is fighting terminal cancer.
The content creator revealed the diagnosis in tears. It came in the first episode of Hulu's The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives: Orange County. The episode premiered Thursday.
Ovard said the crisis hit without warning. One day her daughter seemed fine. The next day she was not.
Ovard has three daughters. She did not say which one is ill.
She described the moment she and her ex-husband, Parker Ferris, got the news. Both clung to hope at the hospital. They told themselves it had to be nothing serious.
Then came the words no parent wants to hear. Their child had cancer. It was terminal. Doctors said she could be gone within a month.
That was more than three years ago. Ovard said the couple has lived in constant fear ever since.
A later episode brought a note of relief. Ovard said her daughter recently had another stable scan.
She also said it is unusual for a child with this type of cancer to have so much time. She gave no further details about the diagnosis.
Ovard, 30, and Ferris, 31, met in high school. He proposed in 2015. She was 19. He was 20.
The former couple share three daughters. Cove is 7. Lola is 5. Elle is 2.
Ovard filed for divorce in April 2024. She had learned that Ferris had secretly been drinking for years. She filed on the same day she announced the birth of her third child.
The issue hit close to home. Ovard strongly opposes drinking. Her father struggled with alcoholism and later died from it.
On the show, Ovard admitted the marriage was already failing. She said it was nowhere near strong enough to survive a diagnosis like this one. Their relationship had been under heavy strain before the news arrived.
Even so, she said she kept caring for Ferris. She knew how deeply he was grieving.
One tense therapy scene shows the pair at a painful crossroads. Ovard tells Ferris she is working to earn as much money as possible.
Her goal is simple. She wants neither of them to have to work while they grieve.
Ovard is now openly in a relationship with a married couple. The three form a throuple.
In Episode 2, Ovard explains why she stays quiet around her castmates. Many of the other women in the spinoff are parents.
She said talking about her daughter's illness with them feels triggering and traumatizing.
She set firm boundaries from day one. When she steps out and spends time with others, she wants a break.
She wants distraction. She wants to feel as normal as possible. She said she rarely gets that feeling anymore.
Season 1 of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives: Orange County is streaming now on Hulu.
Follow Us
