Al Roker Shares Photos Of Son Nick In Honor Of National Sons Day
Al Roker is showing appreciation for his 20-year-old son, Nick.
“I am one of the most fortunate fathers in the world to be able to celebrate such a special young man as @nickroker155 on #nationalsonday,” Al captioned an Instagram carousel on Sept. 29.
To commemorate the day, Al posted photos of himself and Nick through the years. In the first picture, Nick is seen as a little boy with baby teeth. In the last slide, he has a beard and towers over his dad.
The TODAY weatherman and his wife, Deborah Roberts, share three children: Nick; Leila, 23; and Courtney, 35. His eldest is from his previous marriage to Alice Bell.
Al and Roberts, who is an ABC News senior national affairs correspondent, are empty nesters after dropping Nick off at college in August.
“After all the hard work. All the discipline. All the dreaming. All the prayers. His moment to soar has come,” Roberts wrote in a touching Instagram post.
Nick is on the autism spectrum, and the family has been vocal about his challenges and accomplishments.
In 2019, Al wrote an essay for Guideposts magazine detailing how far Nick has come with the help of speech, behavior and occupational therapists.
“Nick is a hard worker; he’s got a great sense of humor; he’s outgoing and a good swimmer; he’s developing a pretty good top-of-the-key basketball shot,” Al revealed. “He takes chess lessons a couple times a week, and he does OK. He’s also very affectionate — like his grandfather — and full of love to share.”
“I admire him,” he added.
Al also expressed gratitude for his time with Nick during quarantine.
“Being in the house together all the time can be challenging for anyone, and it’s especially hard when your child has additional needs,” Al told AARP The Magazine in 2020. “But I’m so proud of the person Nick is becoming, and so glad I have this extra time to see him maturing into an adult.”
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This article was originally published on TODAY.com
