After being laid off in the 2020 QVC extensive programming overhaul, Antonella Nester made some lifestyle changes. She and her husband, Chris Nester, sold off their home and started living on a boat full-time.
But things went downhill as Antonella went through weight loss and got diagnosed with Non-Hodgkins' lymphoma.
Living on Boat was Part of Retirement Plan
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the home shopping channel, QVC, let go of some of its fan-favorite hosts. Antonella Nester, among Gabrielle Kerr, Stacey Stauffer, and Kristine Zell, was one of them.
Antonella revealed the reason behind the departure through a Facebook post. She said it was due to the re-airing of the recorded program in QVC2.
Just a week after the news of her leaving QVC, the popular host became vocal about her plans on living on a boat with her husband. She even took to her YouTube channel on July 24, 2020, to disclose that she bought a new ship - her new home.
Her retirement "home" looked like an inch too small as it didn't have enough space to house the couple's things. While that boat did look disheveled in every way it counted, another video from the host calmed everybody's nerves.
In an October 14, 2020 video, the former QVC host seemed to be on the lookout for another boat.
Antonella and her husband tried to sell their possessions to buy a new boat, which she confirmed with video on November 12, 2020.
The video featured the exteriors and interiors of her home and was titled 'Goodbye home...selling our home'. After her fans showed grave concerns regarding her living condition, she addressed the queries in a video posted a month later.
She revealed that she couldn't pay off her home's mortgage due to her recent job loss and husband's unemployment. But why did she buy the boat?
The host mentioned that the idea wasn't something spontaneous; it was a part of their retirement plan of 33 years. And the fact that both the couple became jobless only led them to quicken their plan.
As for her two sons, Michael and Philip, and daughter, Hope, there seemed to be no issue as they live independently.
Together with Husband Chris Nester in Ups and Downs
If the Nester family are having the best time of their lives now, it is only because of Antonella and Chris's struggles. In 2018, she shared a heartbreaking personal story with the QVC community.
She revealed that she and her husband could barely make a decent living when they were just married.
Once, the pair had saved up for months, and they decided to get a bracelet that Antonella had her eyes on. But, when they went to the shop, Chris noticed a watch beside a case, and his face gleamed in fascination.
Antonella said that when Chris saw the watch, it was the same glimmer in his eyes when she saw the bracelet. The watch was not under their budget; it was the same price as the bracelet: $150.
Since Chris was always buying things for her and their kids and never for himself, Antonella decided not to buy the bracelet. She instead chose to get the watch for her husband. But Chris wouldn’t have it and insisted that she get the bracelet.
Not the one to relent, the former QVC host bickered with her husband. She then sneakily thrust the bracelet back into the storekeeper’s hand and asked the storekeeper to finalize the watch.
Moved by the couple’s selfless love for each other, the storekeeper offered a 50% discount on both items. The deal enabled the couple to buy both the bracelet and the watch.
Antonella added that though they had very little money left for the vacation, the gesture meant everything. She also maintained that she and her husband wear their gifts to this day as proof of their selfless love.
Suffered from Weight loss amid Cancer Battle
Antonella Nester has been vocal about her bouts with cancer with her fans, whom she also calls "Bookers."
At first, she had a nerve sheath tumor in her arm. As specialists diagnosed it as a dead cyst, she underwent surgery in December 2020 to remove it. The tumor's biopsy concluded it to be malignant lymphoma.
To make sure of her diagnosis, she went to the Jefferson Cancer Institute on her birthday, 20 January 2021.
After a P.E.T. scan, she got diagnosed with Non-Hodgkins' lymphoma, an incurable but manageable type of blood cancer.
Antonella already had symptoms of the disease; she had lost 40 pounds and felt lethargic despite proper diet and 20 hours of sleep everyday.
And not only did her full-body scan helped her find the lymphoma, but it also revealed that she had two lumps under her breast. After another biopsy, it turned out that the tumors were cancerous. However, the breast cancer and her previously present lymphoma weren't related.
While talking about her discovery and experience with cancer in her YouTube video on February 14, 2021, Antonella shared that she felt immense tiredness.
She also clarified that she would be dealing with her breast cancer and go for a bone marrow biopsy. However, no updates have surfaced out since then.
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