Valarie Stewart, Daughter of the Voice of Br’er Bear, Has Passed Away

She was a fierce defender of her parents’ legacy and the work they had done on Song of the South. Now, Valarie Stewart is with her parents and it becomes our task to honor her family’s legacy.

It was an amazing interview on the WDW Pro YouTube Channel. Valarie Stewart, daughter of Nick Stewart, sat down to talk about her dad’s work on Song of the South and beyond. Her story is incredible. Babysat by Ella Fitzgerald, the daughter of Hollywood royalty, a friend of the earliest black celebrities, Valarie would live long enough to see her parents’ efforts largely disregarded for sociopolitical purposes. But that never stopped her. She just continued to fight for the preservation of Song of the South, the remembrance of Splash Mountain, the revivification of The Ebony Showcase Theater, and so much more.

At the age of 83, now Valarie has slipped into the next life. Because her passing was unexpected, Ms. Stewart’s family has not yet put out a public statement or obituary at the time of this article’s publication. Although the news has broken online, we also would like to be respectful of the family and wait for their release before we provide any additional information.

For our Twitter friends: Valerie Stewart, Nick and Edna Stewart's daughter has passed away according to her family. The family are not aware of others posting this info and are still processing it. I have spoken with the family and sent condolences but have no further information pic.twitter.com/kYf5AdJpfb

— elva green (@elvagreen123) March 14, 2023

While we await more information on Ms. Stewart’s life, legacy and memorial, I think it’s worthwhile to watch this video interview — to my knowledge the last long-format recorded conversation she did — and enjoy her story. I will have an additional video out this afternoon remembering Ms. Valarie. We messaged regularly in private and I consider her a friend. She will be missed but she will never be forgotten. We will continue to fight for the things she believed were worth fighting for.

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