Who Were Kimberly Guilfoyle's Parents, Mercedes And Anthony?

Former San Francisco prosecutor Kimberly Guilfoyle has family on two continents. Her mother, Mercedes Guilfoyle, grew up in Puerto Rico, and her father, Anthony Guilfoyle, hailed from Ireland. Family and heritage are clearly a source of pride for Kimberly, who has called herself "a proud Latina" on Instagram, a nod to her mother. Kimberly frequently mentions her parents in speeches and interviews, crediting them for shaping the person she is today. Kimberly is a very recognizable face, especially because of her relationship with Donald Trump Jr., but who were Mercedes and Anthony? 

The couple combined their cultures and built a family, but their connection was cut short when Mercedes died of cancer. This loss upended the family's lives and left Anthony as a single father. Without her mother in her life, Kimberly grew closer to her father and the Irish side of her family. In another Instagram post, she said: "One of my most cherished memories is when you brought me to Ireland to meet my grandparents for the first time, Nancy and Patrick "Paddy," and the photo of us on the Shannon River remains a treasure." This and other memories Kimberly has shared over the years demonstrate the loving, supportive family her parents worked to build. 

Unfortunately, one tragic part of Kimberly Guilfoyle's life happened very early: Her mother, Mercedes Guilfoyle, died when the former prosecutor was just 11 years old. The loss was undoubtedly challenging for the whole family, but Kimberly appears to have had an especially close bond with her mother. In 2015, she told Mediaite how deeply her mother influenced her: "My mother was just everything to me, I loved her so much, I always wanted to be around her. I loved how I saw people react to her." 

There aren't a wealth of details available about Mercedes' life, which began in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. However, Kimberly has been very open about the lessons she learned from her mother. As she described, "I got my sense of giving back [from her] and how when you have many blessings, pay it forward." Mercedes' welcoming disposition was undoubtedly an asset in her career as a special education teacher, a profession she held until she died in 1980 from leukemia. After her mother's death, Kimberly helped her now-single father raise her younger brother, Anthony Guilfoyle Jr. 

Anthony Guilfoyle grew up in Ireland and immigrated to the U.S. as a young adult. He wore several professional hats; he was a construction worker, contractor, and real estate investor. As Kimberly Guilfoyle mentioned on Instagram, he was also a soldier, which she found inspiring. According to Kimberly: "Your service in the United States Army taught me invaluable lessons about hard work, fearlessness, and believing in oneself and others."

Later in his life, Anthony helped shape the politics of San Francisco. As SF Gate notes, Anthony was nicknamed "The Godfather" in local politics and was an important facet of Kimberly's ex, Gavin Newsom's, mayoral campaign in 2003. In the article, Kimberly described the important role her father played in Newsom's campaign: "He was the one who took care of everybody ... He was the communicator. He ran the back channels. He was tremendous when it came to dealing with field strategy." 

Sadly, Anthony died of cancer at age 72 in 2008. Kimberly continues to praise him for the positive impact he had on her life, such as in a 2021 Facebook post in honor of Father's Day. Kimberly wrote: "To my amazing father, Anthony Guilfoyle thank you for the incredible job you did as a single father raising Anthony and I after our sweet mother Mercedes passed away. She knew you would do an amazing job with us." Based on Kimberly's obvious reverence for her father, it appears Mercedes was right.