Kathie Lee Gifford Leans on Faith: Family, Relationship

Kathie Lee Gifford recently shared an adorable video with her son Cody and grandson Frank. “So joyful to be home with my loved ones,” gushed the Today alum about her visit to Connecticut. “From my oldest to my youngest to the two brand-new ones on the way.”

That’s right. Kathie Lee, who became a grandma for the first time in May 2022, is preparing for two more additions to the family! Cody and his wife, Erika, are expecting a sibling for little Frank this winter. Meanwhile, Kathie Lee’s daughter, Cassidy, and her husband, Ben, will welcome their first child this month.

For Kathie Lee, it’s been a time of great blessings. “Every moment is a gift,” Kathie Lee, 69, who is “Bubbe” to little Frank, says. She can hardly wait to meet the new grandkids. “She is over the moon about her grandbabies,” says a friend.

As thrilled as she is about the expansion of her family, Kathie Lee notes that “it isn’t about me, frankly — it’s about them.” To that end, she has tried to be a source of support and comfort to her children as they embark on their parenting journeys, but she never interferes. “Don’t put guilt and burden on your kids. God knows they have enough of it already,” she says. “Be a blessing. Laugh, giggle and dream with them.”

NEW ADVENTURES

In 2019, the widowed performer, who lost her husband, NFL great Frank Gifford in 2015, gave her longtime family home in the Northeast to Cody and moved to Nashville for a fresh start. “I’ve had so many times of struggle and grief,” she says. “Grief is natural. We need to have a season of it, but God doesn’t want us to stay there.”

She’s been dating Nashville-based businessman Richard Spitz for around two years. The relationship is serious — and geographically desirable! Richard bought the house next door to Kathie Lee in 2020. “She and Richard have so much in common. He shares in her love of faith, family, food and living in Tennessee,” says a friend.

The pair, who are often spotted dining out together or heading to the gym, reportedly took a break from each other last April, but it was brief. “Kathie Lee just got a little nervous about how serious they became. It scared her, but he’s a good man and they worked things out,” says the friend, who adds that the star’s children also like Richard. “Everyone who meets him likes him for Kathie Lee. They joke that she wears the pants but he runs the show. He has a very Southern gentleman yet New York sensibility about him, which she likes.”

Kathie Lee also has some exciting developments in her work life. “She’s always writing music and screenplays, working on and juggling a few faith-based projects,” says the friend, who adds that Kathie Lee has modest expectations. “She understands showbiz is fickle, she doesn’t stress over the ups and downs. She says it’s all in God’s hands.”

Kathie Lee recently created The God of His Word, a streaming Bible study video with Rabbi Jason Sobel, co-author of her 2022 tome The God of the Way. “I just want people to know him personally,” she says of the Lord. “I want them to understand that they shouldn’t be afraid of him, they should welcome his presence into their life.”

She feels her faith-based work is a way to give back. After all, she has so much to be thankful for. “One day, we’re going to run out of time in this world,” she says. “I want to spend every day joyfully, purposefully and faithfully.”