Kelly Ripa held back tears during an emotional segment on Live With Kelly and Mark . The TV presenter spoke about the loss of someone who impacted the lives of her and her children.
Kelly, 54, began the segment on Wednesday, October 2, by paying tribute to Yvette Siegel-Herzog. She was responsible for helping Kelly and Mark Consuelos ’ youngest son, Joaquin Consuelos , find his way in school.
"Every now and again, there’s a person that enters your life that changes it for the better in ways that seem momentous at the time, but then you flash-forward 10 years, and you go, my gosh, the way this woman has impacted and changed the course of our lives, our family’s lives, can’t be overstated," Kelly told Live viewers.
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“That’s how she met me. I think I was crying in her office. She was such a special, enlightening, empowering presence in our lives," the All My Children actress, who also shares kids Michael and Lola with Mark, 53, said.
Sadly, Siegel-Herzog passed away at 100, one day prior to the broadcast. Kelly told viewers that she was “really crushed.”
“I didn’t want to come to work today,” she admitted. “I think about all of the generations of kids that she’s impacted and what great lovers of learning they’ve become because of her. I thank her and may your legacy live many, many lifetimes."
A few years ago, Kelly opened up about how Joaquin, 21, has dyslexia and dysgraphia on Live . At the time, he was getting ready to choose which college he wanted to go to.
"Mark and I were FaceTiming the other night ... Mark got very emotional, and very choked up, because he said, 'You know, I never thought he would be able to go to college.' Because he was profoundly dyslexic and dysgraphic," the mom of three said during the February 2021 episode of the talk show.
Kelly said that her son was able to reach the milestone "through hard work, determination [and] remediation."
"But, kids with dyslexia learn how to read the room, they pick up on social cues ... their other skills become [stronger]," she continued.
Ultimately, Joaquin decided to go to the University of Michigan. He is currently a member of the school's wrestling team. Kelly opened up about dropping her youngest child off for his freshman year of college in September 2021.
"We dropped him off at school and we gave him a hug — it was actually brutally painful,” the Emmy winner admitted. “And I said, 'I did not realize that 18 years would go so fast.' And he didn't say anything, he was just giving me a hug. But he turned to walk away and I said, 'Wait, Joaquin, one more!' And he kept walking. And I knew that it was happening to him too, the emotion."
"It's one of those things where, you can never be ready," Kelly added. "We've done it before but the other two, they stayed in New York so we knew they were there, even though their visits weren't as frequent as we thought."
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