Lance Waldroup, one of the smugglers on Discovery’s “Moonshiners” reality show, died on February 25 in North Carolina. He was 30 years old.
The network confirmed Waldroup’s death in a Facebook post earlier this week.
“We are sad to hear about the loss of Lance Waldroup,” said the network. “An adventurous distiller who was introduced alongside his father during the first seasons of Moonshiners, Lance was always looking to take his tasty recipes to ‘shine to new heights.”
The cause of death has not yet been revealed. However, a GoFundMe page created by his family to raise money for a memorial fund says the death was “unexpected”.
Waldroup, one of the series’ less experienced smugglers, often appeared in “Moonshiners” with his father, Jeff, whom he often turned to for guidance.
According to GoFundMe, Waldroup is a native of Graham County, NC. His sister, Lyndsey, had cystic fibrosis and died at age 11, and her brother, Lamar, also had cystic fibrosis and died at 20, 1.5 years after a lung transplant, leaving Lance without brothers. The losses left him with the guilt of a survivor, according to the page, and he “was addicted for several years and then decided to change his life. He went to rehab and became a recovered addict. “
Waldroup left the “Moonshiners” to take care of his mother, Lynn, after she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. “He didn’t want to leave her side and he waited on her hands and feet,” says the GoFundMe page.
A memorial service for Waldroup is scheduled for March 6 at Cedar Cliff Baptist Church in Robbinsville, NC