Hefner's former live-in girlfriend said the publishing icon "will be in my heart forever.”
As friends, fans and former Playboy bunnies take to social media to pay tribute to media legend Hugh Hefner, who died on Wednesday at the age of 91, Kendra Wilkinson is remembering the man who made her "the person I am today."
“Hef changed my life," Wilkinson told ET in a statement. "I couldn't be more thankful for our friendship and our time together."
Hefner's former live-in girlfriend, who dated the publishing mogul from 2004-2008 and co-starred on his Girls Next Door reality show, added, "I will miss him so much but he will be in my heart forever.”
After splitting from Hef, Wilkinson married former NFL pro Hank Baskett in June 2009 and is now mother to a 7-year-old son, Hank IV, and a 3-year-old daughter, Alijah. She opened up to ET this summer about whether or not she'd want her daughter to follow in her footsteps and pose for Playboy.
“I won’t sit here and say that I would like that, but if she made a healthy decision and a healthy choice with a healthy mind to want to pose for Playboy… We are a free home, we are a free spirit,” the 32-year-old reality star told ET. “If that’s your way of wanting to express yourself and who you are, then go ahead and be exactly who you want to be.”
See more on Hefner's life and legacy in the video below.
Reporting by Brendon Geoffrion.
