Kate Spade’s dad dies of ‘a broken heart’ hours before tearful family mourn at designer’s funeral
Frank Brosnahan died at his home in Kansas City, Missouri, where Kate's funeral was held yesterday
KATE Spade's dad died of "a broken heart" hours before tearful loved ones gathered to lay the designer to rest yesterday.
Frank Brosnahan, 89, died at home on the eve of Kate's funeral service in Kansas City, Missouri.
Mourners gathered at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Redemptorist Church for yesterday's emotional service, with many carrying Kate's iconic handbags.
The 55-year-old's grieving husband Andy, and his actor brother David Spade, were seen hugging friends and family members outside the church.
During the moving service, Andy expressed his "deep love" for the tragic designer.
Father Donald P. Farnan, who gave the mass, told the "Her husband just shared a little about how they met, their love story and how she was a great person. He expressed his deep love for her."
He said: "She'd been taking some pills, which I advised her not to take."
It is the same church where Kate's grandparents were married.
Celebrity fans of Kate's designs included Kate Middleton, Kerry Washington, Sasha Obama and Mischa Barton, and her net worth in 2018 was £111.8million ($150million).
She met her husband Andy when the pair were just students, while working in a men's clothing store in Phoenix, Arizona.
In 1993, they founded fashion and lifestyle brands Kate Spade New York, and a year later they married.
Two years later, she had her own stand-alone store in New York City, with Kate Spade & Co worth £1.12million ($1.5million).
Kate sold 56 per cent of her brand in 1999 for £25million ($33.6million) and the remainder in 2006 for a reported £44million ($59million).
The Kate Spade brand is now owned by Coach parent company Tapestry.
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