Gabrielle Union Buries Father’s Ashes at Cape Town Winery in Emotional Farewell
American actress Gabrielle Union has shared a deeply personal farewell to her late father, burying his ashes beneath the vines at Klein Goederust Wine Estate, a Black-owned winery near Cape Town.
Union's father, Sylvester "Cully" Union Jr., a U.S. military veteran, passed away on April 3, 2026, at the age of 81 following a lengthy battle with dementia.
In an emotional Instagram reel posted this week, the Bring It On and Being Mary Jane star revealed she returned to the estate where her family had previously planted vines and trees during a 2022 family trip to celebrate her 50th birthday and to lay her father to rest.
"Burying my dad's ashes at a winery in Cape Town, under the very vines we planted together as family just a few years ago," she captioned the post, adding a message of legacy: "May you nourish the earth the way you nourished us."
Klein Goederust, owned by Paul and Makhosazana Siguqa, has become a meaningful place for the Union family, who describe the owners as extended kin. The actress has long shown appreciation for South Africa and its Black-owned businesses.
Union, 53, has spoken openly about the profound heartbreak of losing her father and the slow toll of dementia on families. This latest gesture appears to mark a meaningful step in her grieving process.
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