Bethenny Frankel announces death of her mother Bernadette Birk from lung cancer at 73: ‘She was brilliant, funny, cultured and wise’

Bethenny Frankel announced that her mother Bernadette Birk passed away on Friday from lung cancer at age 73.

The reality TV personality, 53, shared the heartbreaking news on Saturday in an Instagram post with throwback photos of her mother and lengthy caption about their ‘complex’ but loving relationship.

She shared that her mother was battling lung cancer and around the time of her passing, she ‘had a sixth sense’ and knew that her mother was finally ‘free and at peace.’

The Real Housewives of New York City alum — who got candid about her ‘traumatizing’ divorce from her ex-husband Jason Hoppy on her Just B podcast over a week ago — wrote that her mother was ‘complex, in pain, isolated and had demons’ and they shared that they had a difficult past, but they still cared deeply about each other.

She added that they reconciled after an unspecified length of time of being distance because of her daughter Bryn, 13. 

The reality TV personality, 53, shared the heartbreaking news on Saturday in an Instagram post with throwback photos of her mother and lengthy caption about their ‘complex’ but loving relationship

Frankel shared that her mother ‘adored’ being a grandmother to Bryn and left her worldly possessions to her beloved granddaughter. 

She also said that she was the only one her mother wanted to be the notified next of kin. 

In her post, she shared photos of her mother dancing with her from what appeared to be her secret wedding to her first husband Peter Sussman in 1996.

At the time of her mother’s passing, Frankel said she had been wearing her favorite dress and was dancing to the song I’m Alive. 

In her post, she also encouraged her fans to reach out to anyone they have a ‘complicated’ relationship with and reconcile. 

‘Please call, connect with, or hug someone you have a complicated relationship with today,’ she wrote.

She shared that her mother was battling lung cancer and around the time of her passing, she ‘had a sixth sense’ and knew that her mother was finally ‘free and at peace’