Mama June Shares Rare Update on Granddaughter Kaitlyn, Says She ‘Reminds’ Her of Anna

June “Mama June” Shannon shared a rare update about her granddaughter Kaitlyn, revealing that she “reminds” her of her late daughter, Anna “Chickadee” Cardwell.

“Kaitlyn’s been here for over a year now because they lived in the house where Anna passed away and she’s getting adjusted,” June, 45, told People about Anna’s eldest daughter in an interview published on Thursday, December 12.

After Anna died at age 29 following her battle with stage 4 adrenal carcinoma in December 2023, June was granted custody of Kaitlyn, 12, in September.

“She definitely reminds us of Anna,” June continued of her granddaughter. “I tell a lot of people that if you want to know what Anna looked like as a teenager, Kaitlyn. Attitude, the way she talks, the way she acts, everything is Anna.”

In addition to Kaitlyn, Anna was also the mother to daughter Kylee, whom she shared with ex-husband Michael Cardwell. Anna’s ex currently has full custody of Kylee, 9.

June also looked back on the most difficult part of the year while speaking to the outlet. “Her just not being here for the girls and a lot of s–t has happened,” the longtime TV personality admitted.

“We had to go through a custody battle that we won,” she continued about the court battle over Kaitlyn. “We had to also deal with Michael taking Kylee away from everybody here and moving to Alabama.”

June has been open about her grieving process in recent weeks. She penned a candid post on the one-year anniversary of Anna’s death on Monday, December 9, while sharing photos and videos of her late daughter via Instagram.

After noting that her family misses Anna “everyday,” she said that they “talk about her daily” and that “grief is crazy.”

“It comes out of nowhere. Sometimes I cry for no reason,” the mother of four continued while discussing the grieving process. “I get mad cause she ain’t here to raise her kids and sometimes [it’s] mentally and emotionally draining. This year has been hell for all of us but she will never be forgotten [sic].”

Just days earlier, June shared another post detailing the grieving process via Facebook on December 3. “It will be a year on Monday and we miss the hell out of Anna Marie Cardwell and would give my last penny to just talk to her and [for] her [to] be here for her girls,” she wrote. “Grief honestly [hurts] at random times.”

June shared that she had “no control over crying,” “being mad” or acting like everything was fine when she felt like she was “dying inside.”

She went on to explain that Anna’s death was “so hard” on her entire family. “But we have [to] keep our promise [that] we take her [everywhere] with us like she wanted and I will continue to do so,” June said.

Back in June, the matriarch and her daughter Lauryn “Pumpkin” Efird revealed they were trying to stay strong for the sake of Anna’s daughters. “We have Kaitlyn, too, so [that’s] definitely a consistent reminder in having Kaitlyn,” Lauryn, 24, said during an exclusive interview with In Touch. “We wanna keep that alive, too. Cause that is her mama.”