If there’s one thing Kathie Lee Gifford is known for better than her happy hour with Hoda Kotb on weekday mornings, it’s her undying love for late husband, Frank.
Frank Gifford spent his life playing, commentating and watching football alongside his wife, Kathie Lee, and their two kids, Cassidy and Cody. On August 9, 2015, he died at the age of 84 due to natural causes.
Since his sudden death, Kathie Lee has been open about her grief, heartache and her unwavering faith in Jesus Christ when it comes to moving forward, and navigating life without her husband of nearly 30 years.
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Throughout her career, Kathie Lee has thrown herself into musical theater productions, including the musical Saving Aimee, which became a Broadway production in 2012.
She’s also brought her musical talents to the Today show, often writing and performing songs for a segment called Everyone Has a Story. Viewers submit their stories online—detailing their hardships, trials, triumphs and joy—and Kathie Lee will write and perform a song on their behalf.
Last week, Kathie Lee took Studio 1A by emotional storm with a song and performance written about her own story—in honor of her beloved Frank.
The song titled “He Saw Jesus” is a raw and emotional piece that reflects back to the moment Kathie Lee knew that her husband had gone Home.
“We knew it was a special song because it’s just so gut-level honest,” Kathie Lee tells Hoda on Today. “And we knew it would be a song that could touch people—and that was the point of it.”
The lyrics are written straight out of the morning Frank passed away. As the couple prepared for church like they did every Sunday, Kathie Lee sings about “a little kiss, a little coffee, a little moment to pray, our Sunday mornings always started that way…”
It was after this small and seemingly normal ritual that the talk show host knew something wasn’t right.
She went downstairs to find her husband collapsed on the floor, and Kathie Lee could tell by the look on his face that “He saw Jesus.”
Check out Kathie Lee’s touching performance below. Her song, “He Saw Jesus,” is available on iTunes, and all of the proceeds from the track will go to the international relief organization Samaritan’s Purse.
