Melina French Gates has opened up about her divorce from her ex-husband, Bill Gates.
French Gates spoke candidly about announcing her divorce in 2021, after 27 years of marriage, during an interview with Timepublished on June 18. Speaking to the publication, she reflected on her life at home during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, which was when she and Gates were separating.
She acknowledged how grateful she was to have a private break, as she did when two of her three children – Jennifer, 28, Rory, 25, and Phoebe, 21 – lived with their parents full-time.
“It gave us the privacy to do what needed to be done privately,” he said of the split during the pandemic. “You know, I separated first before making the complete decision about divorce. And to be able to do it privately while still trying to take care of the kids, while still making certain decisions about how you're going to unravel your life, thank God.”
French Gates, 59, was also asked if she was concerned that the divorce could affect her and her husband's private charity, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. In response, she acknowledged that her separation was ultimately “a more personal matter.” However, she noted that she still had both her organization and her children in mind at the time.
“I thought a lot about my three children,” he said. “But I certainly thought about the effect on the base. Those are the three most important groups: me, the children and the foundation. And I wanted to make sure that when we got to the other side, when Yo I passed through it on my side; All those pieces were intact.”
French Gates, who announced his departure from the foundation last month, also spoke candidly that he is in a good place now, despite how difficult his divorce was.
“Getting divorced is a horrible thing. It's just painful. It’s horrible when you realize you need it,” she said, before correcting herself by clarifying that divorce is “a difficult thing” rather than “a horrible thing.”
She was then asked how she felt now that the difficult parts of their separation were over, to which she responded, “It's been wonderful. “I’ll leave it there.”
The philanthropist went on to share how happy she feels in her own space, noting that she lives close to many of her friends.
“I live in a neighborhood. Now I can walk to small shops. “I can walk to the pharmacy, I can walk to a restaurant,” she explained. “I love it.”
Last month, she revealed that she would be leaving the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation after more than two decades to pursue her own charitable work for women and families.
“This is not a decision I made lightly,” he wrote in a statement shared on X, formerly known as Twitter. “I am taking this step with full confidence that the foundation is in good shape. “It is the right time to move forward into the next chapter of my philanthropy.”
During his interview with Time, once talked about why he decided to leave the foundation. “I was ready to be able to have full control in making decisions about where all the funds go,” she said. She also shared her belief that the foundation will continue, as the board of directors, which includes her ex-husband and Mark Suzman, the executive director, “believes in women's health.”
Gates and French Gates finalized their divorce in August 2021. Months later, during a wide-ranging interview with CBS MorningsFrench Gates revealed how she finally decided to separate from Gates, who had previously admitted to infidelity during their marriage.
“I certainly believe in forgiveness, so I thought we were past some of that. It wasn't a moment or a specific thing that happened,” he said during his television interview in March 2022. “There just came a point where there was enough there and I realized it just wasn't healthy and I couldn't do it. “I don’t trust what we had.”
During the interview, Melinda also claimed that her ex-husband's friendship with child sex trafficker Jeffery Epstein contributed to their divorce.
“I didn't like that he had meetings with Jeffery Epstein. I made it clear to him. I also met Jeffrey Epstein exactly once. I wanted to see who this man was and I regretted it from the moment I walked in the door,” he told Gayle King.
