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Katie Couric’s Role as a Mom of 2 Kids Is Her Greatest Assignment! Meet Daughters Ellie and Caroline
Katie Couric has taken on plenty of different roles throughout her career in TV, but nothing comes close to being the mother of her two kids. Over the years she’s starred on NBC’s Today and Yahoo Global News, it’s become clear that Katie strives to be the best parent possible to her daughters, Elinor Monahan and Caroline Monahan.
Katie welcomed her first child, who goes by the nickname “Ellie” alongside her late husband, John Monahan, in July 1991. The couple — who tied the knot in 1989 and were together until Jay’s death in 1998 — expanded their family when Caroline, or “Carrie” for short, arrived in January 1996.
Throughout her first few years of motherhood, Katie juggled her hectic career as a TV journalist and broadcast news anchor while taking care of her family. Tragically, Jay died in January 1998 following a battle with colon cancer.
Who Is Katie Couric’s Daughter Ellie?
Katie and Jay welcomed their eldest daughter, Ellie, on July 23, 1991. Since she’s grown up, she’s followed in her mom’s impressive footsteps. Not only is she stunning like Katie, but Ellie is also just as smart as she graduated from Yale University. Following her graduation from the ivy league school in 2013, Ellie pursued a few jobs in Hollywood. Most notably, she’s helped write episodes for TV series like The Boys, Mr. Robot and more.
When it comes to her personal life, Ellie is equally accomplished. In February 2019, Katie announced her daughter was engaged to her longtime love, Mark Dobrosky. “OMG!” the proud mom captioned her post via Instagram. “And she’s wearing the ring her dad gave to me.”
In July 2020, Katie revealed the two were preparing for their nuptials as she shared a video of Ellie shopping for her wedding dress. “Happy almost wedding day Ellie and Mark! Same time, next year!” Katie wrote. “P.S. she DID NOT say yes to this dress!!!”
Ellie’s wedding plans were pushed back a number of times amid the coronavirus pandemic, but Katie announced her daughter officially tied the knot in July 2021. Alongside a photo of the blushing bride and groom watching fireworks at their reception, the proud mama wrote, “Baby you’re a firework. Happy wedding Ellie and Mark. (Of course, more pics to come when I recover!)”
Just one day before her daughter walked down the aisle, Katie posted touching throwback photos of the pair and marveled over how “proud” her late husband, Jay, would be to watch their child get married.
“It seems like yesterday when Ellie was crawling up my body like a little gymnast and doing a backflip off my shoulders,” the TV personality penned. “When she wouldn’t take off her Belle dress — ever. When she got her wisdom teeth pulled and was so loopy she asked the dentist to lunch. When she would spin the volleyball before a serve. When she headed off to college where she met a wonderful guy named Mark. When she moved to L.A. for graduate school … and became a successful TV writer. And on and on. It went by in a flash and today Ellie is getting married to her beloved Jersey boy. My heart is full of unbridled happiness for them both and for all of us who are coming to celebrate their love and life itself.”
In December 2023, the family shared that Ellie was expecting her first child. Katie posted a video on her Instagram account documenting the moment she found out she was going to be a grandmother through a friendship bracelet inspired by Taylor Swift.
“Been dying to tell you,” the broadcaster captioned the sweet video. “This is what happens when you go to a @taylorswift concert last summer and forget your friendship bracelet and your daughters say, ‘Don’t worry, we made one for you!’
Katie announced the birth of her first grandchild on Instagram in March 2024.
“John Albert Dobrosky was born on his due date, Saturday, March 23rd at 8:23 am, just shy of seven pounds,” she captioned a series of photos of the baby boy. “He will be called Jay in honor of his maternal grandfather. Albert is after Mark’s paternal grandfather. Mom and Dad (Ellie and Mark) are over the moon 🌕 (it was a full moon) I am thrilled to have my first grandchild, Carrie can’t wait to be a cool Aunt and Molner is enjoying handing out cigars. We feel so blessed. 💙🥰🍼👶🏻💙 I wrote about the special day in Wake-Up Call, so click the link in my bio to read it!”
Who Is Katie Couric’s Daughter Carrie?
Katie’s second daughter, Carrie, arrived less than two years after Ellie’s birth on January 5, 1996. Like her older sister, Carrie has both brains and beauty.
In 2018, the young adult graduated from Stanford University. At the time, Katie celebrated her daughter’s accomplishment by sharing a super cute throwback photo. “Heading to Carrie’s graduation. How did THAT happen?” she captioned the post.
According to Good Housekeeping, Carrie loves studying and traveling as she spent some time teaching English in France. Per her Instagram, she also enjoys cooking, knitting and experimenting with different fashion trends.
Most impressively, Carrie is involved with the Black and Pink pen pal program. According to the organization’s website, Black and Pink coordinates “a nationwide pen pal program in which we match incarcerated LGBTQIA2S+ people and people living with HIV/AIDS with pen pals who correspond, build relationships and participate in harm reduction and affirmation.”
In March 2021, the brunette beauty shared a video while on the phone with her pen pal, Tanya. “Tanya is the most amazing person I know,” Carrie wrote in the caption. “[We] met through Black and Pink’s pen pal program. If you want to start writing to someone but need help, send me a message.”
After losing her first husband, Jay, to colon cancer, Katie and her girls have made it their mission to encourage young people to screen for the disease. In March 2022, the longtime anchor and her eldest daughter appeared in a commercial as part of her Mission to Screen campaign to raise awareness for colon cancer screening and research. Katie shared the reasoning behind her and her two daughters’ advocacy in a March 2022 interview with People.
“One of the reasons is that there are so many people needlessly missing these major milestones in the lives of people they love,” she said. “And, of course, when anything happens with my girls, I think, ‘I wish Jay could see them go to the prom. I wish Jay could see them graduate from college…’ He would be so proud of them. I wish Jay could have walked Ellie down the aisle.”
