Katie Couric shares snaps of her new grandson and how his name is a tribute to her late husband Jay Monahan who died in 1999 aged 42

Katie Couric is a proud, gushing, first-time grandmother. 

The former Today Show anchor, 67, shared that her daughter Ellie, 32, and her husband Mark Dobrosky were expecting a baby back in December.

But the new parents kept the sex of the baby under wraps until he was born.

Now the journalist is sharing that her first grandchild is named after her late husband and her daughters Ellie and Carrie’s, 28, father Jay Monahan.

Monahan was an attorney who died of colon cancer at the age of 42 in 1998.

But the new parents kept the sex of the baby under wraps until he was born. Now the journalist is sharing that her first grandchild is named after her late husband and her daughters Ellie and Carrie’s, 28, father Jay Monahan

Couric wrote in a caption to her 1.7 million followers, ‘John Albert Dobrosky was born on his due date, Saturday, March 23rd at 8:23 am, just shy of seven pounds.

‘He will be called Jay in honor of his maternal grandfather. Albert is after Mark’s paternal grandfather,’ she continued. 

Katie and Jay had been married for nine years at the time of his death. 

Couric opened up about her husband’s last days in a 2021 interview on The Today Show. 

‘I was so worried about letting go of hope, because I didn’t want Jay to spend whatever time he had left just waiting to die,’ Couric said. 

‘I think it takes extraordinary courage to be able to face death, and I think I was too scared, honestly.’

She also wrote about those moments in her 2021 memoir Going There.

‘I did everything I could to keep Jay alive,’ Couric wrote. ‘Looking back, I wish I had done a better job helping him die.’ 

Since Monahan’s death, Katie founded Stand Up to Cancer and has dedicated herself to informing the public about colorectal cancer.

Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of death  among men and women in the United States, and it claimed the life of Chadwick Boseman at the age of 43.

In March 2000, Katie had a colonoscopy on live TV to emphasize the importance of the preventative measure. 

Couric wrote in a caption to her 1.7 million followers, ‘John Albert Dobrosky was born on his due date, Saturday, March 23rd at 8:23 am, just shy of seven pounds’

‘He will be called Jay in honor of his maternal grandfather. Albert is after Mark’s paternal grandfather,’ she continued

Katie and Jay were parents to Ellie, 32, and Carrie, 28

Katie and Jay had been married for nine years at the time of his death

Couric opened up about her husbands last days in a 2021 interview on The Today Show. ‘I was so worried about letting go of hope, because I didn’t want Jay to spend whatever time he had left just waiting to die,’ Couric said

She also wrote about those moments in her 2021 memoir Going There. ‘I did everything I could to keep Jay alive,’ Couric wrote. ‘Looking back, I wish I had done a better job helping him die’

At the time of Jay’s death, Couric said focusing on her work kept her grounded, per Today.

‘Working was my salvation,’ Couric said.

‘If I was doing a cooking segment, I couldn’t be thinking about, you know, Jay’s latest scan. It helped me maintain my sanity.’

Couric healed and found love again with banker John Molner, whom she married in 2014.