‘Jenna & Friends’: Tom Llamas Gets Emotional On Air With His Parents

Tom Llamas turned his Today With Jenna & Friends cohosting gig into a family affair.

Jenna Bush Hager and the NBC Nightly News host sat down with his parents, Luis and Lisette Llamas, on the Thursday, September 18, episode of Jenna & Friends, but not before Tom opened up about his family in an emotional video package.

“To be the anchor of Nightly News, it’s the honor of a lifetime. When I walk into 30 Rock, it doesn’t leave me that I’m the son of immigrants,” he said in the prerecorded clip. “Two people who came to this country, they didn’t know the language, they didn’t have money, and this great, beautiful country gave them a second chance.”

Tom credits his parents with sparking his passion for news, as they kept up with current events on TV in English and Spanish during his childhood.

“When you have to flee your country, you realize how important elections are, how important world events are, and you know that you have to be an informed citizen wherever you are,” he said of his parents, who are Cuban refugees. “And so, I think my parents really instilled in me and my brother that we had to know what was going on, you had to know how the world worked, and you had to be really, really educated in the issues of the day.”

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Tom went on to recall the “incredible moment” he told his parents he would be taking over for Lester Holt on NBC Nightly News earlier this year. “It was an emotional moment because people know, like, in this job, how much time you put into it, how hard we all work. I’ve told them, and maybe I don’t tell them enough, thank you, because without them, I wouldn’t be here,” he gushed. “I credit them with everything, like, with the work ethic, with the support. I mean, they’re my biggest fans. They watch every show.”

Tom ended the video package by stating, “I’m proud to be their son.” Back in Today‘s Studio 1A, Tom’s father couldn’t help but shed a few tears over his son’s kind words.

“My dad’s emotional, and it’s OK because I say he’s earned those tears,” Tom said.

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Tom himself got choked up while thanking his parents for the “sacrifices” they’ve made for him over the years. “Life is about adversity and facing adversity, and these two have been through so much throughout their lives — leaving a country, coming here, starting a business,” he praised. “So, to kind of see the fruits of their labor pay off eventually — ’cause they were so dedicated to me and my brother — it’s been beautiful.”

Reflecting on her son’s career success, Tom’s mother noted that education was always a top priority for herself and her husband while raising their kids. “Our childhoods were kind of tough, so we wanted to give the opposite to our children,” she explained. “Education was the key. When we left Cuba, both our sets of parents told us, ‘You give education to your children, and they never can take it away from you.'”

Bush Hager added, “And now, look at this. You have a son breaking boundaries in this country, making history, all because of the two of you.”

Today With Jenna & Friends, Weekdays, 10 a.m. ET, NBC

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