Yager died in Flint on July 18, 1994. A short time before her death, Yager's latest boyfriend, Larry Maxwell, who was characterized by her family as being "an opportunist who courted media attention for money-making possibilities," married her friend, Felicia White. Maxwell had said that the only donation in Yager's name he ever received was for $20, although numerous talk shows, newspapers, radio stations, and other national and international media are reported to have offered her cash and other gifts in exchange for interviews, pictures, etc. Dietary educator Richard Simmons was quoted as saying that he was "angry that Yager's story was actively peddled to tabloid and television media by Maxwell and others."