Kathie Lee Gifford Shares Why She Forgave Her Husband Frank Gifford for Cheating During Their Marriage

Talk show star Kathie Lee Gifford was one forgiving wife, that's for sure. Back in the late 1990s, her now-late husband, Frank Gifford, strayed away from their then 11-year marriage — and now she's sharing why she chose to forgive him for cheating on her.

"Sometimes you run out of time to build [trust] again. I was grateful we could," Kathie Lee — who has children Cody, 27, and Cassidy, 23, with Frank — recently shared. "I’m so grateful my children were young and didn’t know. By the time they did, they realized how much their parents love each other — and them — by sticking it out." Their family friend Nikki Haskell exclusively adds to Closer Weekly, "Her strength is amazing. Their whole life was wrapped around their family."

Kathie and Frank.

Thanks to her faith and the fact that it was a one-time thing, Kathie Lee was able to look past the unfortunate event. "It’s a tremendous test of your relationship," she said of the experience. "The ones who make it through do it with the help of God."

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Kathie Lee and Frank were married for nearly 30 years before his passing on Aug. 9, 2015, from natural causes. In a previous interview with Closer just months after Frank died, Kathie Lee opened up about how she's moving on. "I’m not [just] coping, I’m thriving," she said at the time, adding that she won't be dating anytime soon. "We are trying to adjust to the new normal, and that will take a while. I keep expecting him to come in the door."

Kathie Lee and Frank with their kids in 2005.

And she didn't let the one year anniversary of his death pass without remembering her late hubby. "I've gotten through this past year the way I've gotten through every day of my life: faithfully trusting God to do what God does, which is to show up, redeem and restore," she wrote last August. "God doesn't promise you a year. He promises you a day at a time. He broke life into 24-hour periods because that's all we can handle. The next day, you reach for your fresh cup of mercy that you need every bit as much as the day before."

For more on Kathie Lee and Frank Gifford, pick up the latest issue of Closer Weekly, on newsstands now — and be sure to sign up for our newsletter for exclusive news!