Why Did Kathie Lee Gifford's Daughter Cassidy Have Two Weddings?
Kathie Lee Gifford stepped into the role of mother-of-the-bride when her daughter, Cassidy Gifford — who the former television host shared with her now-late husband, Frank Gifford — said "I do" in June 2020. The younger Gifford married her longtime love, Ben Wierda, and while the two were surely thrilled to be husband and wife, their wedding may not have been what many people expected. Indeed, a representative for Cassidy told Us Weekly, "Ben and Cassidy got married in an intimate setting in his backyard in Michigan."
Although the wedding may not have been a big affair, while on "The Drew Barrymore Show" in October of the same year, following her nuptials, Cassidy explained, "Truly, it probably sounds like I'm full of it, but I would not trade a single thing." She added that, in her opinion, "it was about what it was supposed to be about." That's surely one of the reasons why she admitted, "We're just kind of in bliss about it all. So, it's been wonderful."
Cassidy may have been just a little bit over-the-moon about her sweet ceremony, however, she still ended up having a second wedding for a very specific reason. Keep reading to find out what that was!
Cassidy Gifford's second wedding was very different from her first
When Cassidy Gifford married Ben Wierda back in June 2020, the world was still deep into the COVID pandemic, People pointed out. Because of that, the bride and groom only had 18 guests join them for the special occasion. At the time, Cassidy seemed fine with the smaller ceremony, however, even then, her rep told Us Weekly that the couple was merely postponing their bigger wedding, which they intended to hold when they were able.
That finally happened in October 2021 when the pair had a second wedding that was, in fact, a "four-day bash," Kathie Lee Gifford told People. Taking place in Nashville, which she called "a great party town," Kathie Lee explained, "We had about 180 guests. Still smaller than it was going to be. A lot of people are still worried about mingling, of course, during COVID. So the event was smaller, ultimately, than it might have been pre-pandemic."
The seemingly proud mom also noted that Cassidy hadn't even worn her wedding dress before that point, and when she did, it was surely a special moment, if you judge by the photo that the bride shared on Instagram. Wearing a stunning lace wedding dress that boasted a long train that could clearly be seen in the photo which also sees her giving her husband a kiss, it looks like Cassidy got to have two dream weddings. Does that mean she also gets to celebrate two anniversaries?