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Rachael Ray is feeling seriously grateful for her husband John Cusimano amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. In an exclusive interview with Us Weekly before a house fire raged through the couple’s upstate New York home, the bestselling author and award-winning daytime TV show host shared how Cusimano has helped her through this uncertain time.

“John and I have always worked together, but in separate buildings. John focuses on the business dealings and all of the different facets of our brand while I make TV shows in the studio all day,” the 51-year-old Rachael Ray host told Us exclusively on Wednesday, August 5. “But now we do everything together which of course is a huge adjustment.”

Shortly after the coronavirus pandemic began, Ray and Cusimano relocated to their country house in Lake Luzerne, New York. Prior to the fire on Sunday, August 9, that damaged the home, Ray was shooting her show from the abode two days a week, with the businessman serving as his wife’s cameraman.

“For us, I think that we now have a better understanding of the role each of us has played, behind the scenes. I don’t normally get to hear what he does during all the business calls that would happen in a day,” she continued. “And he doesn’t see how much work goes into making TV shows.”

The My Year in Meals author then praised her spouse for wearing multiple hats at once. “Since we have been making TV at home John has had to take on a million roles,” she explained. “He has done 10,000 loads of dishes. He’s a cameraman and tech services.”

According to Ray, though it’s been hectic, this time has brought her and Cusimano closer together. “I think we have a deeper appreciation of each other when we are not driving each other nuts, just like anybody else,” she told Us. “And I know, because we’ve discussed it, how grateful we are that we have jobs and that we have the opportunity to work from home. It’s a really big deal.”

On Monday, August 10, Ray tweeted her thanks to the crews who helped extinguish the fire that damaged her home. “Thank you to our local first responders for being kind and gracious and saving what they could of our home,” she wrote. “Grateful that my mom, my husband, my dog… we’re all okay.”

The New York native added: “These are the days we all have to be grateful for what we have, not what we’ve lost.”

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Prior to Sunday’s fire, Ray was also hosting a free virtual cooking camp from her home called Rachael Ray’s Yum-o! Cooking Camp. The 16-part live virtual series, which launched on July 30, was designed to help provide a fun and accessible activity to support families whose camps and child care centers are closed this summer.

The interactive online activity connected viewers to their favorite chefs, celebrities and lifestyle personalities who taught them simple recipes, skills and techniques designed to up their culinary game. Though the recipes were created to be easy enough for kids 8-15 to follow along, everyone was welcome to join. The virtual camp was slated to run for several more weeks, though it’s not yet clear if it will continue given the current state of Ray’s home.

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