Sonja Christopher, the first contestant to ever be voted off “Survivor,” and the first lesbian on the show, died Friday at the age of 87.
Jeff Probst, the show’s host, paid tribute to the star in a touching social media post shared Sunday. “Sonya [sic] was one of the kindest people to ever play Survivor,” he said. “Every interaction I had with her over the years was lovely. She would always greet you with a smile on her face and joy in her heart. I’m honored that our paths got to cross.”
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Christopher was a music therapist and breast cancer survivor when she joined the first season of “Survivor: Borneo.” She was 63 years old at the time, according to The New York Post.
The famous “Survivor” contestant said she was inspired to join the competition after enduring a three-day outdoor training program for survivors of breast cancer.
The show’s challenges proved to be too much for Christopher, and she visibly struggled on the show, which led Probst to snuff her torch out on day three of the competition.
She said being the first castoff was “a little humiliating,” but went on to come to terms with her experience on the show. ”
“If somebody recognizes me — which is nothing like it used to be — and asks, ‘Weren’t you on ‘Survivor’?’, I’ll say, ‘Yes, I have the dubious distinction of being the first person ever voted off ‘Survivor,'” she told Entertainment Weekly, during a 2020 interview, according to The New York Post.
Christopher went on to appear in one episode of Dick Van Dyke’s, “Diagnosis: Murder,” and appeared on “The Rosie O’Donnell Show,” as well as “The Daily Show. (RELATED: O.J. Simpson’s Cause Of Death Revealed)
The circumstances leading up to her death, and her cause of death, have not yet been publicly shared.