Hundreds Mourn The Loss Of Kate Spade At Kansas City Funeral
Fashion designer Kate Spade’s funeral was held on Thursday, June 21, with hundreds of attendees, many carrying her namesake purses, conveying on a church in her hometown of Kansas City, Missouri.
Shortly before the funeral began, the Spade family also released another somber statement that Kate’s father had passed away the night before as well.
89-year-old Earl Brosnahan Jr. was reportedly in poor health and was “heartbroken” after his daughter had taken her own life.
In a report published by NBC, it appeared that people from all stages of the iconic designer’s life had come out to pay their respects. A high school classmate that was in attendance mentioned that Spade was “incredibly kind” and had a memorable laugh.
Olivia Lott was also amongst the crowd at the church, shielding themselves from the rain with large black umbrellas.
“I just feel like her vocation was to fill the world with beautiful things,” Lott said, comparing Spade as a person to the vibrancy of her design language.
Spade was found dead in New York City on June 5 from an apparent suicide.
Andy Spade, her husband and business partner, stated that she had regularly been taking medication and seeking help for her depression for quite some time.
He was joined by actor/comedian brother David Spade, leading people into the church.
A funeral official followed the family, bringing the large white urn with him, as the congregation sang “The First Noel,” which is a reference to the famous designer’s birthday, on Christmas Eve, as well as her middle name, Noel.
Spade launched her company back in 1993 after a stint as a magazine editor, and her well-renowned designs have earned her multiple awards from the Council of Fashion Designers of America, as well as being named a “giant of design” by House Beautiful magazine.
Aside from mentioning her ongoing battle with depression through medication and therapy, Andy Spade also mentioned after his wife’s suicide that the pair had been living apart for the past 10 months, but kept regular contact. He also was very clear in maintaining that this was not indicative of any marital strife, and he and his wife were not at any point in that span of time legally separated or considering divorce.
our foundation is donating over $1 million to these causes, starting with $250,000 to @crisistextline. from june 20-29, 2018, it'll also match public donations made to @crisistextline, up to $100,000. to donate, go to https://t.co/QpR7XiV69R. pic.twitter.com/DLzwyDbEMF
— kate spade new york (@katespadeny) June 20, 2018
Kate Spade New York issued a statement on June 20 that it planned to donate $1 million to suicide prevention and mental health awareness foundations in honor of the designer’s personal struggles with both.
