Bob Saget and Kelly Rizzo.Photo: Leon Bennett/Getty Images
Kelly Rizzois “in a much better place” nearly two years afterthe deathof her husband, comedian and actorBob Saget.
The 44-year-old sat down with PEOPLE at Wednesday’sCool Comedy Hot Cuisine, a tribute to Saget benefitting the Scleroderma Research Foundation, to discuss her late husband’s legacy and how she has managed to move forward two years after his death.
“I am in a much better place now than I was in the very beginning," Rizzo tells PEOPLE. “Every day, every month, everything just continues to progress, and evolve and get better. The second year has definitely given me the ability to look at videos, look at photos and have memories of Bob where I can actually laugh and appreciate them and smile."
“Versus, just feeling like it’s a gut punch every time I look at a video or see a photo,” she continues. “I’m actually able to appreciate those memories more.”
Bob Saget and Kelly Rizzo.Kelly Rizzo/Instagram
Reflecting on the years she spent with Saget, Rizzo says her biggest takeaway is “gratitude.”
“From as early on as I can remember when everything happened, my biggest thing has been being so grateful for the time I did have with him, versus feeling robbed of the time we didn’t have together,” she explains. “So, that’s really helped me get through everything. And I think that’s still the underlying message that just carries me through each day.”
“To me, standup comedy is maybe the hardest job in the world… to go on stage alone is terrifying,” Rizzo notes. “To have to make people laugh, to me, is the hardest thing you could possibly do. And the fact that comedians do it, knowing they’re going to get even abused at some point, they go up there knowing they’re going to bomb.”
From left: Aubrey Saget, Bob Saget, Kelly Rizzo and Lara Saget at a Scleroderma Research Foundation event.Leon Bennett/WireImage
Still navigating the loss of her husband, Rizzo says she’s managing to find ways to laugh.
Saget was found deadat the Ritz-Carlton in Orlando, Florida on Jan. 9, 2022. One month later, his family confirmed that hedied due to head trauma. He was 65.
Prior to his death, theFull Housestarworked for yearsto support theScleroderma Research Foundationafter his sister Gay died from the disease. He first supported the non-profit in 1991, and thenbecame an outspoken advocatefollowing Gay’s diagnosis.
Bob Saget.Rich Fury/Contour/Getty
Wednesday’s event was no different. With Saget’s legacy at the forefront, the fundraiser brought in over $1.2 million for the Scleroderma Research Foundation — something Rizzo tells PEOPLE “would mean a lot” to Saget.
“It’s still very surreal that he’s not here at these events," she says. “But I think they’ve really captured his essence of… Even just the way the event looks, the colors, everything, it’s exactly what Bob would’ve chosen. So, it’s still like he’s a part of it in a sense.”
Rizzo continues, “And this cause meant everything to him. It was his life’s work. He dedicated almost 30 years of his life to it ever since his sister passed away from scleroderma. So, he would just be so honored and touched that people still cared so much, and were still paying tribute to him, and coming out and supporting the cause.”
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To donate to the Scleroderma Research Foundation in Saget’s memory,click here.
source: people.com
