Everyone’s favorite weatherman, Al Roker, is a family guy through and through. He often shares glimpses into the lives of his three kids, as well as his wife, Deborah, proving that he couldn’t be prouder of his blended family.
Al welcomed his firstborn, Courtney, in 1987 with his ex-wife Alice Bell; the pair split in 1994, and the now 70-year-old went on to marry Deborah Roberts in 1995. He then welcomed his daughter Leila in 1998 and his son Nick in 2002.
It’s clear as day that his three children adore him; he revealed in an interview with Today.com that the best Father’s Day gift he receives from them every year is quality time. “Whenever they’re together, that’s my Father’s Day,” he sweetly shared.
Al’s kids are just as hardworking and talented as their father, with Courtney working as a recipe developer, Leila as a media expert, and Nick studying for his degree. Join HELLO! as we discover all about his three talented children.
© John LamparskiCourtney Laga
Al and his first wife, Alice Bell, adopted Courtney in 1987 three years after they tied the knot, and never looked back. He reminisced about the day they brought her into their lives in a 2020 Zoom segment for Today and how “humbling” it was to welcome a new baby.
“An hour before, there was a car seat with nobody in it. And then, an hour later, there was a baby,” he said. “And all of a sudden you are humbled because now you realize there’s somebody greater than you that needs your protection.”
Courtney, now 37, is a successful recipe developer for Chefman and Chef IQ and even collaborated with her dad on his recipe book, which dropped in October.
“I put all my heart into this,” she said in an Instagram post; the book is called Al Roker’s Recipes to Live By: Easy, Memory-Making Family Dishes for Every Occasion.
Al’s eldest daughter got engaged in April 2020 after her now-husband, Wesley Laga, asked the weatherman for his blessing.
The couple married in a beautiful New Jersey ceremony a year later, surrounded by family and friends, including Al’s colleagues Hoda Kotb, Dylan Dreyer, Craig Melvin and Sheinelle Jones.
© InstagramCourtney Laga
The pair welcomed their daughter, Sky Clara Laga, in July 2023, and Al couldn’t have been more enamored with his first grandchild.
He posted a photo of the baby girl on Instagram, writing a sweet caption in a tribute to Sky.
“And then this little girl came into my life,” he said. “Welcome to the world, Sky Clara Laga. In love all over again. Thank you, Courtney and Wes for such a perfect blessing. You [sic] baby is beautiful. Already planning the ways to spoil her and then hand her back.”
He gushed about the new addition to the family on an episode of Today, explaining how “magical” it was to have a grandchild.
“The thing is, everyone tells you it’s going to be ‘this thing’, and you don’t know; it’s like when they tell you about having your first child,” he said.
“And then to hold this little girl, knowing almost 35 years ago I held her mom? And here she is, 5 lbs., 15 oz., 19 inches long, and she’s just perfect.”
© Paul BruinoogeLeila Roker
Al welcomed his second child, Leila, with his second wife, Deborah Roberts, whom he married in 1995.
Leila was born in 1998 and has followed in her father’s footsteps since, completing media internships and working as a social media correspondent and production assistant on Today in 2016.
The 26-year-old completed her studies at the American University of Paris in 2021 with a journalism and fine arts degree.
She now works at a PR firm in the French capital after joining Peacock’s Tokyo Summer Olympic broadcast team as a production runner in 2021.
© InstagramLeila Roker
“My middle girl, Leila, is a production runner for the primetime show on Peacock, and she’s always wanted to do this,” Al told People after spending time with her thanks to his own Olympic broadcast role.
Al gushed about how proud he was of his middle child to Today.com and revealed how vibrant her personality is.
“[Leila] has a wicked sense of humor and is a hard worker and a loyal friend,” he told the outlet.
Leila is also an activist and penned a powerful essay in the wake of George Floyd’s death in 2020.
© InstagramNick Roker
Al’s youngest child and only son, Nick, was born in July 2002 and has overcome a multitude of obstacles in his life after being diagnosed with learning difficulties.
Al revealed to Guideposts magazine in 2019 that Nick is “somewhere on the spectrum and maybe obsessive-compulsive,” explaining that his life hasn’t been easy.
“We knew right from the beginning that [Nick] would be up against a whole different set of challenges,” he told the publication.
“The obstacles in this kid’s way were things that might have tripped up many others. Not Nick, not even with the disabilities he was born with.”
He continued: “I can’t begin to take credit for who Nick is and who he might become. All sorts of specialists can tell you about limitations for this and that. Nick never got that message.”
© InstagramNick Roker
Nick is a hard worker and boasts a slew of impressive hobbies, including being a blackbelt in Taekwondo and winning two gold medals in the Special Olympics for swimming when he was just 16 years old.
“He’s very goal-oriented and he’s a great kid,” the weatherman gushed about Nick on Today.
“As a lot of parents who have kids who have special needs [know], they can try your patience. Not that they mean to, or anything like that. I look at him and all that he does and I want to be a better person.”
Nick is now in his second year at college, and like any parent, Al and Deborah struggled to say goodbye to their youngest child.
“Just dropped Nick off. We’re going to miss him,” he said in an Instagram video in January after the winter break had finished.
“But like my dad always said, ‘Can’t miss you if you don’t leave,'” he quipped.
