It’s been nearly four years since the legendary Hollywood star Betty White died just days before her 100th birthday, but she is still missed by millions of fans to this day. Now, White’s former Hot In Cleveland c0-star Valerie Bertinelli is speaking out to reveal how she still leans on the iconic actress years after her passing.
Bertinelli’s ‘Best Advice’ From White
After appearing The Drew Barrymore Show last week, Bertinelli took questions from the audience for a segment that was posted to Instagram. She brought up White when she was asked what the best advice she’s ever received was.
“The best piece of advice is from Betty White,” said Bertinelli, 65. “She really taught me about gratitude. I thought I was grateful. She was just living, breathing gratitude, every second of her life, every moment I was around her.”
Bertinelli went on to say that White “was grateful for the good, the bad, the ugly, all of it.” This outlook on life has helped Bertinelli through “really challenging things of the past five years. I’m grateful for the hard stuff.”
Related: Valerie Bertinelli Sounds Off About ‘Emotional Abuse’ After Bitter Divorce
Bertinelli’s Bitter Divorce
These “really challenging times” undoubtedly included Bertinelli’s bitter divorce from her ex-husband Tom Vitale. She filed for divorce from him in November of 2011, one month before White died. Their divorce quickly took a bitter turn as Vitale battled with Bertinelli over their finances in court. Their divorce was finalized in November of 2022 after eleven years of marriage.
“It’s sucked, and I wish I didn’t have to go through it, but there was no other way for me to learn a better way,” Bertinelli continued. “And I think mistakes are there purposefully to help us learn what not to do.”
“So, gratitude for sure,” she concluded. “Every moment, I’m grateful for. Even the hard stuff. Especially the hard stuff. That’s Betty White.”
Bertinelli and White starred together on the sitcom Hot In Cleveland for six seasons from 2010 until 2015. While working on this show, they became close friends in real life.
During a previous appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show back in June, Bertinelli opened up further about her bond with White. She gushed over the late star, saying that White “was magical.” The former One Day At A Time star also called herself “lucky” to have been able “to work with her for five years.”
Related: Betty White’s Beloved LA Home Demolished So New Owner Can Build Mansion
Bertinelli Admits She’s Going Through A Tough Time
Bertinelli has likely been leaning on White’s life advice more than ever these days. Indeed, in May of 2025, Bertinelli admitted that she is “going through some of the most emotionally excruciating eight months of my life.”
“This is not to say I feel sorry for myself because I don’t,” she told her social media followers. “Nobody has the market cornered on grief and heartache. People go through hard [expletive] all the time. You just do what you have to do to get through what you have to get through.”
“And I don’t know that I would change any of it,” Bertinelli added. “I’ve learned so much more about my strength, my weaknesses, my patience, my resilience, and my worth. I still have more inner work left to do.”
At the end of 2024, Bertinelli split with her boyfriend Mike Goodnough. While they only dated for ten months, Bertinelli was very public about their relationship.
Find out more about that in the video below.
White was such an inspiration to so many that it’s no surprise that her advice is living on long after her passing. God bless Bertinelli for continuing to live by the wise words of Betty White. In the end, we should all be doing the same thing!