Ivana Trump's Friend Shares Their Heartbreaking Final Conversation
New details are emerging on the death of Ivana Trump, ex-wife of former President Donald Trump. Many of her closest friends and family members are still reeling from the unexpected death, which took place after she reportedly fell down a flight of stairs in her Manhattan home at the age of 73. Ivana left behind three children, 10 grandchildren, and four ex-husbands.
In light of her death, multiple celebrities and politicians, mostly alumni from the Trump administration, took to social media to express their condolences. "Our mother was an incredible woman — a force in business, a world-class athlete, a radiant beauty, and caring mother and friend," Eric Trump, Ivana's youngest child, wrote in an Instagram tribute the day of her death. "Ivana Trump was a survivor. She fled from communism and embraced this country."
However, heartfelt tributes were not the only things Ivana's loved ones had to share in the wake of her passing. Recently, one of the former business magnate's closest friends shared the heartbreaking story of their final conversation before her death.
Ivana Trump's friend says she was 'very excited' for an upcoming trip
Zach Erdem was a Turkish immigrant, who could hardly speak English when he first met Ivana Trump in 2003 as a busboy at a New York City restaurant, according to People. Ivana, an immigrant herself, became close with Erdem after he opened his own restaurant in the Hamptons, which she would frequent. In light of her death, Erdem shared the heartbreaking story of their final conversation.
"For the first time, she's like, 'I don't know if I can make it to the Hamptons this summer,'" Erdem recalled her telling him several weeks before her death, per People. "She was very excited to go to Europe. She hadn't gone to Europe for a couple years." He went on to say that her ticket to leave was booked for only a couple days after her death. "Friday, or Saturday or today, she was supposed to go there. But then she was like, 'I want to get back. I'm coming back to see you and I can't wait to see you.'" Of course, Ivana would never end up either taking this trip or seeing Erdem.
Erdem added that Ivana was going to "surprise me," but said she "didn't feel good and she didn't want to get out of the house. She was kind of upset." After she died, Erdem posted an Instagram tribute to her. "Miss you already Ivana," he wrote, alongside several pictures of the two of them, taken at his restaurant, based on the photo's geotag. "RIP."
Ivana Trump's best friend was worried about her house's staircase
With Ivana Trump's death ruled as an accident, her best friend said that she saw it coming. In an interview with the New York Post, Nikki Haskell, one of her closest friends, revealed that she was always worried about how Ivana might slip on the poorly designed staircase.
"I was always so upset about that staircase," she told the outlet. "I hated those stairs. They were so treacherous. We worried about her falling. Her townhouse was four stories high and while there was an elevator, she never used it. It's a beautiful staircase but I wouldn't want it. It's so steep and deep. Friends used to say to me, 'Why don't you stay with Ivana when you're in New York?' But you couldn't pay me to hang out there and go up and down those stairs."
Even Zach Erdem had a hunch that the stairs in Ivana's townhouse may hurt her. Without knowing her cause of death at the time, he assumed that she may have hurt herself. He described the staircase as being "tight" and recalled how Ivana would always ask him to slow down whenever they hung out. "When we were walking on the street, she used to get on my arm," he told People. "She was like, 'Darling, slowly, slowly, I'm not a 20-year-old anymore.'"
Ivana Trump's friend described her as 'an angel'
In the same People interview, Zach Erdem gushed about how he knew Ivana Trump to be selfless, always helping people regardless of their religion or political stance. "She was always supporting charities and everything. She was like an angel. Whoever needed help, she would be there. She didn't care about any politics or religion or whatever, she was ready to help whoever needed it," he said.
He even said how he looked up to her as a "mother" because of her kind nature. And when Erdem was just a fledgling restaurateur, he said that Ivana never stopped rooting for him. "'I want you to be more successful. I know how hard you work. I know where you came from,' which was really cool, when someone knows you and gives you credit," he said, recalling a conversation he had with her in the past. "She knew that I was a busboy. She knew that I didn't speak English when I was a busboy."
Given how generous Ivana was, it isn't surprising that the Trump family has asked funeral guests to donate to Big Dog Ranch Rescue instead, a Florida-based charity close to her heart. "Ivana was philanthropically involved with many charities throughout her entire life, but always remained steadfast and passionate in her love for animals," the donation page reads. "In lieu of flowers, we kindly ask you to support Ivana in her mission to help dogs and donate to Big Dog Rescue Ranch."