Kim Johnson, a runner-up contestant on “Survivor: Africa,” has died. She was 79.
Her death was first announced on social media by “Survivor: Africa” winner Ethan Zohn.
“Rest in peace Kim Johnson. It was a blessing to call you my friend and a privilege to experience the final tribal council with you,” Zohn wrote on Instagram Monday. “I will forever have that planters punch in your honor!”
No cause of death was included, but Zohn tagged the organization Stand Up to Cancer in the post.
Johnson appeared on the Kenya-based third season of the long-running game show in 2001 when she was 56, ultimately winning $100,000 for finishing second after two surprise immunity challenge victories.
“Final immunity challenge was not luck, was not being nice, was not any of those things…” she said on the show. “That was something that came out of me, inside of me a determination I haven’t seen in me maybe ever.”
She remains the oldest female finalist in the show’s 46-season history.
Johnson was born in Cleveland, Ohio and raised in Annapolis, Maryland before settling in Oyster Bay on Long Island. She was a retired elementary school teacher, avid tennis player and volunteered to help blind and deaf people.
Her children, Wendy, Kerry, and Teddy, confirmed the news to Entertainment Weekly.
“Our mom leaves a legacy of strength, resilience, kindness and generosity,” they said in a statement. “She wore her rose-colored glasses right up until the end. She was the coolest mom and grandmother in the world. We will miss her forever…”
Since “Survivor” premiered in 2000, 16 of the show’s 697 contestants are now deceased.
