Cameron Mathison and his wife Vanessa Mathison have decided to separate. The pair announced their split via Instagram on Wednesday, July 31: “After 22 years of marriage, we have made the difficult decision to part ways.
We enter this new chapter with deep love, kindness, and respect for each other. We hold gratitude in our hearts for the wonderful years we shared together.
Our children have been and will continue to be our highest priority, and we will forever share in our devotion and love for them.”
Cameron and Vanessa’s relationship began when they met at a local New York City gym in 1998, leading to a romance a year later. They married in July 2002, after three years of dating.
In July 2022, Cameron commemorated their relationship milestone with an Instagram post: “20 years of marriage. 240 months of morning coffee together, 1043 weeks of cherishing each other, 7035 days of togetherness, 175,320 hours of love, and 1 beautiful family,” he wrote.
“Happy anniversary my love. I have no idea how you’ve put up with me for 20 years.”
Like her husband, Vanessa often shared moments from their marriage on social media, but all such posts have since been removed from their accounts.
The estranged couple shares two children: son Lucas, 21, and daughter Leila, 18. Earlier this month, Cameron shared highlights from a summer trip with the kids.
“Magical trip through AZ so far with my two loves. This fall, Lucas is off to London for the Foundation Program at Central St Martin fashion design,” Cameron posted on Instagram on July 13. “And Leila is off to American University in Paris for psychology. Every moment is so precious.”
Though Vanessa was not visible in Cameron’s photos from the trip, she did comment on the post. “Love these so much!,” she wrote, to which Cameron responded with a heart emoji.
Cameron has been open about his journey as a parent, particularly after his cancer diagnosis. He told in 2020 that the experience made him a “better dad.” (Cameron was diagnosed with renal cell carcinoma and entered remission in 2019.)
“If I didn’t allow this journey that I’ve been on to make me more mindful, more present, to enjoy the moment more, to get more out of every moment I can with my kids, then I missed a big opportunity,” he shared. “Seeing them happy is the ultimate.”
Cameron also strives to be transparent with Lucas and Leila, even about sensitive topics like the birds and the bees.
“It’s tricky. I try to always be honest. I try to give a little bit of truth,” he told. “When my kids were younger, my daughter asked [and] my son didn’t. … I would include things like, ‘Babies come from the hospital.’ I keep it truthful. I just don’t give the whole truth.”
He added, “We did our recon on this to make sure [we] weren’t looking at causing more therapy.”
