“She’s gone…” – Jen Jacob breaks down in tears after sudden loss no one expected

Apparently, this Father’s Day meant more to her family than most. With just a single video and a few heartfelt lines, she offered followers a glimpse into something far deeper than behind-the-scenes soap drama — a story of grief, healing, and the unwavering pull of tradition.

According to Jen, she wasn’t even sure she’d make it home this year. Anyone familiar with the soap opera world knows: when you’re filming five days a week, 52 weeks a year, time off isn’t easy to come by. “When you’re needed, you’re needed,” she wrote plainly. And for a while, it looked like this Father’s Day might break an 18-year family tradition.

But in a surprising twist, she got the green light — thanks to executive producer Julie Carruthers — and flew to Philadelphia to surprise her dad. The look on his face? “Priceless,” she said. And it really was. Watching the moment captured on video, it’s hard not to feel something stir. There’s joy there. Raw, unfiltered joy that only comes after years of sorrow.

Because behind this moment was a tragedy. Eighteen years ago, on Father’s Day weekend in 2007, Jen’s sister passed away after a brutal seven-year battle with cancer. She was laid to rest just days later. “At her funeral,” Jen recalled, “I remember my dad saying that being able to do one final act for his daughter — laying her to rest — was a gift he would never wish for… but was grateful for nonetheless.”

Ever since, their family has gathered each Father’s Day — even through the isolation of COVID years. “We found a way to be together,” she said. It’s a tradition built not just on presence, but on persistence.

Jen closed her message not just with a greeting, but with a gentle embrace to anyone out there quietly hurting. “Loss in any form… is heartbreaking,” she wrote. “Being with the people we love while they’re here is what this life is all about.”

It’s a sentiment that’s hard to argue with — and one we all might need to hear a little more often.