Shenielle Jones took to Instagram to thank her fans for their support on her first day back at The TODAY Show following the passing of her husband, Uche Ojeh. She captioned the heartfelt video, “A note from me, to you. 
.”
“I just wanted to thank you,” the 47-year-old said. “I just want you to know that I read everything and all of your comments. You pray for me, and I’m praying for you. I really underestimated the amount of stuff that we’re all holding, so thank you for holding mine with care.”
Ojeh tragically died on May 23 at the age of 45 from glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer. The two were married for over 17 years.
Sheinelle Jones Gives 1st Interview About Husband Uche Ojeh’s Death
Jones also opened up about how her kids were doing amidst the tragedy and said, “I’m saying thank you on behalf of myself and the kids. Know they see it. They’re old enough now, they’re social, and you guys have been so kind to me and to them and I love you for that. I hope you have a great weekend and thank you for holding me up this week.”
The mother of three then reflected on returning to work at The TODAY Show, saying that wasn’t the hardest part for her.
“The job itself is what I’ve done for decades. It’s the parts that you don’t see, right? So I’ll just share with you. The first morning when I got up on Monday, I’m tiptoeing around in the dark, and then I’m like, ‘Oh wait, you’re not here. Guess I can turn the light on,’” she said.
Ashlee Simpson Shares Update on Jessica Simpson Amid Eric Johnson Split
“I’ve been tiptoeing in the dark in the mornings, waking up to the moon for years, for decades,” she added. “It was tough, that realization — something I couldn’t prepare myself for. And I guess I’ll turn the light on, guess I’ll turn on some music. It’s weird, even now.”
The news anchor ended the video with an inspiring message about hope and fighting for joy in her life.
“I’ll end by saying I’ll continue to fight for my joy because that seems like the best way I know how to put it,” she said. “But I just want you to know I long to get to the place where I don’t have to fight for my joy. That I can just wake up, and I can just be, because for so long that was my natural baseline, was just, I wake up easy. It doesn’t feel like a fight.”
