Widow whose husband died on American Cruise trip says company is still taunting her a year on

A widow whose husband died while on their 'dream vacation' said she is being bombarded with requests for reviews from the cruise company they booked through.

Barbara and Rick Smith of Versailles, Kentucky, set off on an eight day trip with American Cruise Lines in May- something she said they've always wanted to do. 

After leaving out of Idaho, the couple of 33 years had to cut their trip short after Rick, 78, woke up in the middle of the night unable to breathe. 

He was rushed to a hospital where doctors determined he had a leaky heart valve. After undergoing open heart surgery Rick died on June 5, just 24 hours after they started their vacation. 

While Rick was fighting to stay alive, Barbra was telling the cruise line about her late husband's medical nightmare, but they only sent her promotional mail. 

'I’m still getting questionnaires about how our trip was. I’m still getting brochures in the mail from them for future trips,' Barbara told WKYT. 

'It’s like everything that I wrote about Rick to them just went down some black hole. I can’t get mad at anyone because Rick died.' 

Barbara explained that Rick was initially brought to a hospital in Washington after he struggled to breath on the cruise. 

It was there that doctors realized he had a leaky heart valve. Once he was strong enough, Rick was taken closer to home at the University of Kentucky Hospital, where he later died. 

'I said my husband is in the hospital, his health is deteriorating. I don't know how I'm going to get home. Please just consider us with compassion and sympathy and respond... but they didn't,' Barbara said. 

The grieving wife said that she is upset with the lack of care and support American Cruise Lines has shown her as she asked for help re-booking flights and hotels. She added that she never received condolences from the company. 

She admitted that her and her husband did not have traveler's insurance for their trip. 

'That's a bad thing but we were always healthy, we never thought we needed it,' Barbara said. 

DailyMail.com contacted American Cruise Lines for comment.  

Rick was born in Toledo, Ohio and attended Baldwin Wallace University in Berea. He was previously employed as a high school teacher and sports coach, according to his obituary. 

He later went on to work in human resources, working as a manager at Long John Silver's. Rick then worked for other restaurants, including Rally's Hamburgers and Golden Corral. 

He retired as an Executive VP of HR and Training at Piccadilly Restaurants in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. 

Rick was not only a 'best friend' to his wife, who he called Bobbie, but he was a father to two sons, a grandfather and a great-grandfather. 

'My husband was absolutely the best. A sweet, kind, caring man,' Barbara said. 

'People ask us how long we’ve been married. I say not long enough. It could have gone a lot longer.' 

Visitation for Rick was held on Wednesday at Blackburn and Ward Funeral Home and a funeral service was held the following day at Historic St. Paul Catholic Church in Lexington.