Kathie Lee Gifford on Losing Frank, Party Instead of Funeral

Kathie Lee Gifford was widowed a week ago Sunday when her husband Frank Gifford died suddenly in their Connecticut home. He was 84. In an interview with People magazine, the Today Show host talks abou...
Kathie Lee Gifford on Losing Frank, Party Instead of Funeral
Written by Kimberly Ripley
  • Kathie Lee Gifford was widowed a week ago Sunday when her husband Frank Gifford died suddenly in their Connecticut home. He was 84.

    In an interview with People magazine, the Today Show host talks about her loss.

    “Frank was a beautiful man with a beautiful, generous heart,” Kathie Lee says. “He lived fully and loved deeply, and he leaves an amazing legacy of lives touched and changed.”

    On her first day back at work following Frank’s passing, Kathie Lee Gifford addressed her fans.

    “He would want you to know that he died in complete peace,” she shared. “He knew every sin he had committed was forgiven.”

    Some have questioned why there wasn’t a formal funeral for Frank Gifford. Instead Kathie Lee Gifford threw a party as a send-off for her beloved.

    “We did not have a service for Frank last week. We had a party,” she explained. “Frank hated funerals. He hated boxes. He hated to be put in boxes. He hated to get in an elevator. So we played Frank Sinatra all day long and we had a party. The only criteria was, if you were there you had to be somebody that he adored, so it kept it nice and small.”

    The New York Giants plan to honor Frank Gifford in the near future, too, but Kathie Lee is quick to point out it won’t be a funeral.

    It’s “not a service,” she explained, because Frank would “boomerang it.”

    Kathie Lee Gifford said the gathering that is still in the planning stages will be “some way to celebrate Frank’s life that the public could come to.”

    How wonderful that Kathie Lee Gifford is taking solace in the meaningful tributes to her husband that are held on his and her terms. Her strong faith is carrying her through her days of grief, along with those she holds dear, like children Cody and Cassidy Gifford and close friend Hoda Kotb.

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