Bobbie Thomas recently confessed that she was scared to return to work following the passing of her husband, Michael Marion.
She told People on March 2:
“To be honest, there’s real anxiety and sadness about going on the show because, in a lot of ways, it’s like having to really accept that life is officially moved on. He’s not coming back, and in a weird way, when somebody takes time to step back, I could be in that bubble and protect it.”
Thomas returned to the NBC morning show’s set on March 3, 13 months after her husband’s demise. She told Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager that she was lucky to call it home.
She also announced a new project called "Dear Bobbie," where she would accept submissions from viewers about their own challenges.
Before returning to Today, she penned an essay for the show’s website where she mentioned feeling blessed to start a new chapter in life. She wrote:
“I just really want to boomerang back with my whole heart. I feel like I’ve always been looking to extend myself as a girlfriend. I’ve called it a ‘professional girlfriend’ – whether it was talking about the power of lipstick or helping to navigate something else in the lifestyle arena.”
The essay further states:
“For me, what pushes me is knowing that I’m not alone. And I think the outpouring of love that I was really lucky to have and grateful for because of this platform has just pushed me to find purpose for my pain.”
Bobbie Thomas’ husband’s cause of death
Bobbie Thomas’ husband, Michael Marion, suffered an ischemic stroke at the age of 40 in April 2019. His wife had previously provided an update on her husband’s health, saying:
“It’s kind of amazing. If a year ago you told me what I was going to be dealing with a year out, it would’ve been too overwhelming. I think that focusing day by day on what was in front of us, it’s amazing because now we feel so fortunate.”
She added that people celebrate their victories, and it is hard to appreciate small things if they look ahead. She stated that she would never want the same thing to happen to anybody, but there have been so many gifts that have come along having to reprioritize, and it is a bond they have that is unbreakable.
Marion returned from the hospital in a wheelchair after his stroke. Bobbie said at the time that he had progressed to walking with assistance.
Michael passed away on December 1, 2020, at the age of 42. His obituary also paid tribute to him, announcing the news of his death.
Thomas and Marion got engaged in March 2012 and married on May 31, 2013, at Kathie-Lee Gifford’s home in Connecticut. The 47-year-old welcomed her first son Miles Thomas Marion in 2015.
Bobbie Thomas is mostly popular as the Style Editor for NBC’s Today Show and is considered a beauty and fashion expert, having appeared on several TV shows like Fashion Police, The View, and The Wendy Williams Show.