‘Young & the Restless’ Kristoff St. John Laid to Rest Next to Son, Beloved Dog Attends Funeral

Kristoff St. John was laid to rest next to his son’s grave at the Valley Oaks Memorial Park in Westlake Village, California, on Monday, March 4. His family, close friends, and former “Young & the Restless” co-stars were present for the emotional memorial.

St. John died at the age of 52 on Feb. 3, a friend found his lifeless body at his home in Woodland Hills, and although the official cause of his death is still under "additional investigation" according to the Los Angeles County Coroner, he’s believed to have passed from an alcohol overdose.

On Monday, fans got to say their last goodbye to Kristoff in a memorial service at Calvary Church organized by his ex-wife, Mia St. John, which was open for the public. According to The Blast, the event included a musical performance by R&B star Kenny Lattimore, as well as a slideshow celebrating the life of the late star.

Later, family and friends gathered for the private burial at the Valley Oaks Memorial Park in Westlake Village, California, where Kristoff was laid to rest for eternity next to his son Julian St. John’s grave.

Some of St. John’s colleagues and former co-stars, including Katherine Kelly Lang, Vincent Irizarry, Shemar Moore, Adrienne Frantz, Melody Thomas Scott, Hunter King, and Jason Thompson, attended the funeral to pay their respects.

His beloved dog, Brando, was taken to the funeral by Mia, who adopted him and Kristoff’s other dog, Rocco.

Mia shared a collage with pics from the memorial on Instagram, and captioned it:

"Thank you to all the fans, friends & family that attended @kristoffstjohn’s funeral. Your love & support is deeply appreciated. I will miss my boys for the rest of my days on earth, but we must continue to fight in their honor & all that are still suffering #MentalHealth."

GRIEVING FROM THE DISTANCE

The big absent at the funeral was St. John’s fiancé, Russian model Kseniya Mikhaleva. The heartbroken woman took to Instagram to explain that she applied for an emergency visa to travel to the U.S, but it was denied.

“Right now, I want to be with him, his family, and his friends. I am getting thousands of support texts on my Facebook and Instagram, and people are asking why I am not with him and how they can help," she wrote. And continued:

"Several weeks ago I applied for an “emergency” visa for the funeral to say goodbye my fiancé and beloved. [The] Answer was “No.” My heart is broken. I am going through this with a huge pain in my heart, and realize that I don’t have [the] opportunity to say goodbye to him and put flowers on his grave. It is not right, not fair.”

The couple got engaged last August, and according to the grief-stricken model, they had many plans for the future.

THE DEEP SCARS OF LOSING A CHILD

Sadly, St. John had been battling depression since the death of his son Julian in 2014. The boy, who was 24 at the time, took his own life after fighting several mental health issues throughout his entire life.

Kristoff attempted to kill himself in 2017 around the third anniversary of Julian’s suicide and was under suicide watch as he received therapy to deal with his problems.

Two weeks before his death, Kristoff shared a tweet about death and parents grieving for their child; a disturbing prediction of what was to come.

“Grieving the loss of a child is a process. It begins on the day your child passes and ends the day the parent joins them,” said the tweet. To which Kristoff replied:

“Never a truer word was [spoken]. Thanks for posting this.”

THE LAST HOURS

In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Mia St. John revealed that hours before his death, Kristoff called her and mentioned that their son Julian was visiting. “He was just so depressed. He was drinking and just saying, like, nonsense -- that he didn't want to be here anymore,” she explained, and continued:

“He said, ‘Julian is at the door I gotta get the door.’ [He] said, ‘Okay, let’s talk to Julian, bring Julian in.’ Julian came in, and he said, ‘Julian is gonna take me for a walk now,’ and I said, ‘No you aren’t going for a walk right now.’”

Mia also relayed the last text message she received from Kristoff,

“He said, 'Understand, you've got to live in the present observe all the good things in your life and others around you. Julian would not want you to live your life with bitterness and upset, it eats away with you and drains your life slowly but surely. You must rise to the occasion and accept the beauty around you. I believe in you.’”

St. John is survived by daughter Paris, Mia St John, also Julian’s mother; and daughter Lola, with ex-wife Allana Nadal.

The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255. Other international suicide helplines can be found at befrienders.org.