Teddi Mellencamp's Funeral Arrangements Underway as She Battles Cancer — With Her Dad Asking If She Wants To Be Laid to Rest in 'Group Family Mausoleum'
Teddi Mellencamp admits she's already planning her burial with the help of her dad John amid her battle with cancer.
April 10 2025, Published 5:00 p.m. ET
Teddi Mellecamp has arranged her own funeral amid her battle with stage 4 cancer.
RadarOnline.com can reveal the Bravo alum has spoken to her father about the prospect of being buried in their "group family mausoleum" in Indiana.
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star has also been writing her will as she prepares for the worst case scenario.
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills favorite told how veteran singer John Mellencamp said she "may as well" join the plot, as she is currently working on her will, and even added there is space to accommodate her three children she shares with estranged husband Edwin Arroyave — Slate, 12, Cruz, 10, and Dove, five.
Mellecamp, 43, explained: "Yesterday my dad calls 11 times in a row. Finally I answer, I’m like, 'I'm in the bath. Let me live a little.'
"'He goes, 'I just want to make sure you're going to be in our group family mausoleum.'
"I said, 'I have kids, so where are they going to go?' He's like, 'Well, there's going to be the top five and then we're gonna have little areas around it, and then that's where everyone's going to get buried.'"
Rocker John Mellencamp told his daughter she 'may as well' join the family mausoleum - and there's also room for her three kids.
"I go, 'Do I need to make this commitment right now,' and he goes, 'You're doing your will right now, so you may as well put it in there.'"
The morbid conversation also included the possibility of her entering a vegetative state.
Mellencamp told her father she has no desire to "be a vegetable," prompting John to state he plans on being "in charge" of that particular matter.
"I said... 'This is a reminder. I don't want to be a vegetable. I'm good to fight, fight, fight, but if I become a..' and he's like, 'I'm going to be in charge of that.'
"I'm like, 'Well, I'll change my will right now then if you're not willing to.' He's like, 'Vegetable is dependent.' I'm like 'what do you mean? If I'm a cucumber or a...this is not a dependent. It is what it is.'"
The reality favorite also discussed the possibility of her entering a vegetative state during her morbid conversation.
Mellencamp, whose sister will soon be visiting her, followed by their father, said she believes she "agreed" to join the mausoleum, adding: "But either way, I think I agreed to be in the mausoleum, and I'm gonna have to work on my sister next week. The kids will be right behind me."
The reality star was initially diagnosed with melanoma in 2022, but it has now metastasized to her lungs and brain, she recently confirmed in an interview.
Days later, she discovered she had four new tumors on her brain.
Mellencamp says she 'had six brain tumors and two lung tumors; they all came from melanoma that metastasized into these tumors inside of my body.'
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Mellencamp is now confronting the reality that her children may have to face life without her in the very near future.
Stage 4 cancer is the most advanced and serious stage of cancer and indicates that the cancer has spread beyond its original site to other parts of the body.
She said: "I had six brain tumors and two lung tumors; they all came from melanoma that metastasized into these tumors inside of my body."
Given her grim prognosis, Mellencamp's treatment plan has changed, with the star saying: "I find out for sure exactly where we stand on June 1. If you need to do another round, if there's any other surgery, if it's the end. It's a hard pill to swallow.
"It's got to be extremely difficult to think about the end."
"This is definitely the hardest thing (I've faced in my life), but now it feels less hard.
"When I was in the ICU, it was incredibly difficult because I had no memory. One day, I realized it was my daughter's birthday, and I couldn't be there for it; it was really sad. It's still sad when I can't be there for my kids the way I'd normally be."
