In a wedding for the ages, ABC News’ Dr. Jennifer Ashton tied the knot with prolific TV producer and Boston Red Sox chairman Tom Werner in an intimate 5-course affair on Saturday.
The wedding was attended by family and friends including Sara Gilbert, Donna Karan, Corey Gamble Al Michaels and George Stephanopoulos and Ali Wentworth.
“I’m so happy because I never thought I’d find love like this,” says Ashton, 53, who wore a Ralph Lauren Collection dress for the big day. “But when you’re older, it doesn’t take long to recognize when you’ve found your soulmate.”
During the ceremony, which took place at New York City’s famous Harmonie Club, Ashton was escorted by her son Alex, 24, and daughter Chloe, 22, before exchanging emotional vows with Werner, 72.
After the vows, guests were transported to the Metropolitan Museum of Art for a reception at the ancient temple of Dendur for a fish and filet dinner and tunes by the Elan Music band.
“We just wanted it to be a celebration of love and happiness,” Ashton says of the wedding, which was planned by Todd Fiscus of Todd Events. “I never thought this would happen to me. And I’m so grateful.”
Ashton and Werner who produced notable shows such as Roseanne, The Cosby Show and The 70s show and is also co-owner of Fenway Sports Group, Boston Red Sox and chairman of Liverpool Football Club, met in February 2021 through their mutual friend Ben Sherwood, former president of ABC News.
“I think I was one of the only people working in television who didn’t know who he was,” Ashton recalls. “I didn’t watch his shows, and I wasn’t a baseball or football fan. But after our first date, we got serious pretty quickly.”
After facing a huge tragedy, Ashton didn’t always seem to find love again. Her ex-husband, prominent surgeon Rob Ashton, died by suicide just days after they finalized their divorce.
“I’ve been through a lot of heartbreak,” Ashton says. “And in many ways, when you’ve lived through suicide and the loss of a loved one, it makes the hard things harder. I was cynical that I would ever find love.”
Meeting Werner, “it felt very different to both of us,” says Ashton. “And from the beginning he was incredibly sensitive and compassionate. It takes an incredibly strong person to be as gentle with someone’s heart as he has been with mine. He has this ability to heal my wounds and nurture my dreams at the same time .”
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Now, as they prepare for a romantic honeymoon in the Caribbean, “I’m just so excited to be married to Tom,” says Ashton. “Life really is that precious.”
