Feeling the love. Hoda Kotb’s Today family has been nothing but supportive following her daughter Hope’s health scare.
“Hoda’s coworkers and friends have been reaching out right and left and Hoda is definitely feeling the love!” a source exclusively reveals in the new issue of Us Weekly.
The insider continued: “Hoda’s daughter is healing and getting better every day. It’s far less scary for Hoda at home. Hoda decided to take off spring break to spend as much time with her daughter as possible. After the health scare, she realized what was most important to her and it didn’t feel right going into work when her daughter was home all day after their terrifying ordeal.”
Following several days away from the NBC morning show, coanchors Craig Melvin and Sheinelle Jones revealed on Today’s March 1 episode that Kotb’s hiatus was due to a “family health matter.” On March 6, the 58-year-old journalist returned to the series and explained that her 3-year-old daughter, Hope, was in the ICU for “a little more than a week.” Kotb also shares daughter Haley, 6, with her ex-fiancé, Joel Schiffman.
“You know what I realized, too, Savannah? When your child is ill, the amount of gratitude you can have for people who helped you out … I’m grateful for the doctors at Weill Cornell who were amazing and the nurses,” she tearfully told her cohost Savannah Guthrie. “And I’m grateful to my family.”
The following day, the Emmy winner thanked fans for their support during her family’s tough time. “I have read your notes …. your posts … thank you,” she tweeted on March 7. “Means more than you will ever know xo.”
Another source exclusively shared new details with Us about how Hope’s hospital stay had affected her famous mom. “Hoda had been terrified for Hope the last couple of weeks,” the insider noted on March 8. “Hoda has dropped everything and focused on being there for her youngest — by her hospital bed — and taking care of anything she could need. Hope is better now and recovering at home.”
In addition to receiving love from fans and her Today coworkers, Kotb also got support from celebrities, including Jamie Lee Curtis. The actress sent her daughters teddy bears and an item from her My Hand in Yours charity, which raises money for Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. The package also featured a note from the Halloween Ends star, which read, “I know it was scary. This is for your girls.”
Kotb went on to express her gratitude to her fellow mother of two —who shares daughters Annie, 36, and Ruby, 27, with husband Christopher Guest — on the March 14 episode of Today. “I thought to myself, ‘In the middle of her shining moment in her life, she is sending something to me and my kids,’” the Oklahoma native stated. “And I can’t tell you how touching and how beautiful I thought that was. And I just wanted to say thank you.”
Curtis’ Today appearance came two days after she won Best Supporting Actress at the 2023 Oscars.
“Listen, I get it. It’s the hardest thing in the world,” Curtis tearfully responded. “There’s nothing scarier in the world than a sick kid. And that’s why I made My Hand In Yours, and that’s why I support Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, as you support your children’s hospital. This is what we do; this is what they do 365 days a year, 24 hours a day. They show up for your family. So, I was simply showing up for yours in the way I could.”
For more on Kotb, watch the video above and pick up the latest issue of Us Weekly, on newsstands now.
