Husband dies days into Whitsundays cruise holiday as devastated wife faces mounting medical bills

A dream holiday has turned into a nightmare for a Brisbane couple after a woman lost her husband of 50 years just days into their first-ever cruise.

Glenn and Beverley Stein had set sail from Brisbane on March 30 aboard the Carnival Luminosa.

The trip was a special gift from their son who wanted to give the hardworking “Aussie battlers, who had always put others first” a well-deserved break.

Although only a short four-night cruise to the Whitsundays and back, “it was a dream come true,” their daughter-in-law, Sarah Stein, shared in a fundraiser.

“Glenn was like a kid at Christmas, brimming with excitement” as the couple embarked on what should have been the trip of a lifetime.

But tragedy struck three days into their trip when the cruise ship was returning to Brisbane.

Glenn suffered a serious medical emergency on April 2, the family confirmed.

Despite receiving medical care onboard throughout the day, Glenn’s condition deteriorated rapidly, forcing an emergency helicopter evacuation to Bundaberg Hospital.

Tragically, he passed away shortly after arriving at the hospital.

“Glenn and Bev had been married for over 50 years — a lifetime of love, loyalty, and shared memories,” Stein wrote.

“The shock and heartbreak of losing Glenn so suddenly has left an unfillable void in our family.”

Now Beverley is not only grieving the sudden loss of her husband of more than five decades but also facing crippling financial pressure from the ordeal.

The family revealed the medical costs from the cruise alone amount to thousands of dollars, on top of the emergency helicopter flight, funeral expenses, and the cost of transporting Glenn’s body back to Brisbane.

“Bev has always been proud and self-reliant, but this heartbreaking situation is more than anyone should have to bear alone,” Stein said.