Lauren Chapin Is Survived by Her Two Kids, Matthew and Summer — Get to Know Them

If you were around in the 1950s and watching television, then you most definitely know who Lauren Chapin was. She landed the role of the youngest child on the TV show Father Knows Best, playing Kathy “Kitten” Anderson, and later appeared in other projects like General Electric Theater and the film Scout’s Honor. Her sweet child face from the show is one that will forever be etched in the memories of those who tuned in and watched her.

Her son, Matthew Chapin, announced on Feb. 24, 2025, via Facebook, that she died that evening following a five-year battle with cancer. He described the fight as “long” and “hard” and asked that folks keep him and his sister in their thoughts and prayers as they navigate this “incredibly tough time.”

Speaking of Lauren’s children, who are they and what do they do? Well, her daughter is actually a Latin pop singer whom Lauren managed.

While there’s not too much known about Lauren Chapin’s children, the little bit of information that is out there reveals that her daughter, Summer Healy-Chapin, followed in her mom’s footsteps to an extent. Like her mom, Summer appeared on TV and even took it a step further by getting into music.

She starred in the 1993 movie Matinee and starred in the TV series Welcome Freshman, which aired that same year. Summer was born in Los Angeles, and comes from a pretty prominent family. While we know Lauren was a talented TV star, according to IMDb, members of Summer’s family are said to have been involved in the publishing of the original Harper’s Bazaar magazines and even the Webster’s Dictionary.

Little is known, however, about Summer’s father. While Lauren was open about her past marriages and battles with drugs, it’s unclear with whom she welcomed Summer. For context, Lauren was married by 16 after dropping out of high school and divorced at 18, per The Hollywood Reporter.

She then went on to marry again but had to annul that marriage due to her husband having already been married. After that, she became involved with another man who reportedly “turned her into a call girl and on to heroin,” which she continued to use until she was 25. During that time, Lauren suffered eight miscarriages.

Little is known about Lauren’s son Matthew, but he is the one who broke the news of his mom’s death on Facebook. He listed his status on the platform as “heartbroken” on Feb. 24 and also tagged his mom’s Facebook page and her fan page.

His post began, “After a long hard fought battle over the past five years, the time has come. My mother Lauren Chapin passed away from her battle with cancer tonight.”

He continued, “I'm at a complete loss for words right now. Please keep my sister and family in your thoughts and prayers as we go through this incredibly tough time.”

Lauren was 80 years old when she passed and is clearly being terribly missed by many.