Katie Couric's Daughter Just Got Engaged and Her Ring Is Stunning

Photo credit: Getty Images
Photo credit: Getty Images

From Good Housekeeping

  • Katie Couric's eldest daughter, Ellie Monahan, 27, is engaged to boyfriend Mark Dobrosky.

  • Katie revealed that Mark proposed with the engagement ring given to her by her late husband and Ellie's father, Jay Monahan, who died of colon cancer in 1998.

  • Katie, who is now remarried to banker John Molner, and her youngest daughter Carrie celebrated Ellie's engagement news on Instagram.


Congrats are in order for Katie Couric. The journalist just announced on Instagram that her oldest daughter Ellie Monahan is now engaged to her boyfriend Mark Dobrosky.

Katie also revealed that Mark used her own engagement ring, given to her by her late husband Jay Monahan. To say that the ring is absolutely stunning would be an understatement. Take a look:

The proud mom that she is, we're sure to be seeing many more updates from Katie leading up to Ellie's wedding, so we thought it'd be helpful to get to know the Couric-Monahan family better:

Katie Couric married her first husband John Paul "Jay" Monahan in 1989.

Katie met Jay when she was a correspondent for Today and he was lawyer in Washington, D.C. The two wed on January 24, 1989 in Washington in front of their closest friends and family.

Photo credit: Getty Images
Photo credit: Getty Images

Shortly after they got married, Katie's profile began to rise and eventually the couple moved to New York City - Katie landed a permanent spot on Today in 1991. By 1993, she was also cohosting Now, with Tom Brokaw and Katie Couric. During that time, Jay became an NBC News legal analyst for high-profile cases, including the O.J. Simpson trial, according to The New York Times.

Katie and Jay welcome two daughters.

Katie gave birth to her first daughter Elinor "Ellie" Tully Monahan on July 23, 1991. Five years later, the couple welcomed Caroline "Carrie" Couric Monahan on January 5, 1996. When asked by Newsday about her proudest accomplishment, Katie immediately thought of her children. "I think I did a pretty good job of raising my kids," Katie said. "My daughters are, first and foremost, incredibly nice girls with good values."

Jay dies of colon cancer in 1998.

Katie's career continued to take off, but her family's lives were forever changed in 1997 when they received the devastating news that Jay had colon cancer. Katie said Jay's diagnosis made her world go from "complete contentment to complete chaos." After being sick for nine months, Jay ultimately lost his battle with cancer on January 24, 1998.

"I wish that I had the courage to really talk to my husband about the fact that he was probably going to die. It was too terrifying," Katie said. "I think that prevented me ... from ever really saying goodbye."

Since then, Katie has become a cancer activist and even co-founded the charity Stand Up for Cancer.

Katie becomes a single mom to Ellie and Carrie.

With two children under the age of 10, Katie became a single mom and balanced her booming career with motherhood. "As a single mom, it’s definitely challenging. Add trying to have a social life and it can get even trickier. I try to limit the things I do at night and not travel too much. If I do have to be away for work, I make sure I’m home for the nights before I leave and build in plenty of time at home once I return," Katie said in 2012 to Working Mother.

Ellie graduated from Yale University in 2013, and since then has held multiple jobs in television, primarily writing. Carrie graduated from Stanford in 2018, and spent time teaching English in France.

❤️❤️ #lucky #turksandcaicos

A post shared by Katie Couric (@katiecouric) on Jan 4, 2019 at 3:37am PST

Katie finds love with second husband John Molner.

After a few failed relationships, Katie met banker John Molner in 2012. The two met through a mutual friend, and Katie recalled to PEOPLE that it was love at first sight. "What can I say? He had me at hello."

Photo credit: Paul Bruinooge - Getty Images
Photo credit: Paul Bruinooge - Getty Images

They married on June 21, 2014 in the Hamptons after a 10-month engagement. "It took me a long time [to marry again], because I loved being married and I love being married now,” Katie said. "And I’m not a solitary person. I like company. And John is so funny. He’s just got this incredibly dry and wry sense of humor, and he doesn’t take himself too seriously. And he’s just fun to be around."

Katie's family continues to grow.

While we don't know too much about Mark and Ellie's relationship, we did get a sneak peek into their relationship thanks to Carrie's congratulatory post on Instagram:

This wedding is definitely going to be one joyous family affair.

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