Demanding Careers & Energetic Twins

I recently had the privilege of meeting one such masterpiece. Like discovering great art, some of life’s simple pleasures are discovering our neighbors, learning their backgrounds, finding out how we are similar, and celebrating our differences. John R. Green, an award-winning Executive Producer of Special Programming at ABC News, and Anthony LaBate, a designer of unique jewelry for La’Bate Jewelry, live in Holmdel. It’s not every day you can walk into a beautifully appointed home, with its eclectic array of fine art and furniture – and still feel it’s a warm and friendly space. The life sized toy stuffed giraffe, horses and lion certainly helped! The big hugs and warm greetings were not surprising and fit perfectly in the whimsical setting.

John and Anthony have traveled the world and decided nine years ago that Monmouth County was where they would settle and eventually raise children. For the last four years they have been raising their twins in Holmdel. Anyone lucky enough to meet the now four-yearolds, Francesca and AJ, will completely understand why John and Anthony are so proud of them. Their amazing vocabularies and earnest, pleasant demeanors could melt your heart. The dads have demanding careers and yet there is no question their priority and their passion are to provide Francesca and A.J. with a stable, loving, fulfilling home.

The careers and adventures of each of these men could fill books. John is a multiple Emmy, Peabody and Dupont Award winner, whose resume includes coverage of news, as well as entertainment specials: the annual red carpet event “Countdown to the Oscars”; Queen Elizabeth’s Diamond Jubilee at Buckingham Palace; “Megastunts – Highwire Over Niagara”; Ground Zero; Earthquake Haiti; Good Morning America; 20/20; the new “Game Changers”, and so much more. Since many of the ABC stories focus on tragedies, I asked John if there were stories that gave him joy to cover. He thought for a moment, and said, “Glamour– and excitement. Being able to produce the Oscar’s Red Carpet show every year is a highlight. Having grown up watching that event and wondering what it would be like to be there, it’s exciting. Nothing like it in terms of Hollywood celebrity, the attention it gets from all over the world. It’s very unifying.” As an avid sports fan, he also found great satisfaction in covering Super Bowls, World Series and NBA finals, sharing, “To be able to be on the sidelines when you’re just a run of the mill fan” was a particular thrill. Other rare opportunities came about due to his fluency in Spanish and French. One of his favorite assignments was traveling to Cuba in 1998 to cover Pope John Paul’s visit where he served as producer and translator. While there, he relayed how he interviewed the 101 year -old Gregorio Fuentes, the inspiration for Hemingway’s classic, The Old Man and the Sea, adding, “How thrilling was that!” His French led him to jump on the Concorde to Paris within hours of Princess Diana’s death where he stayed for a month translating and It turns out Matt Damon is one of his favorite celebrities. They met on GMA. Matt was there to promote a movie and he chose to sit in the main Green Room instead of a reserved private one. There, he met a teenage guest who struggled with obesity and learned she was promoting a camp to help others. John witnessed Matt Damon approach the young girl and genuinely become fascinated with her story, saw Matt offer to visit the camp and John concluded, “That is a great guy.” working on the investigation. John’s humanity shone through even when asked if anyone deeply affected him.

Over the years, John collaborated frequently with news anchor Robin Roberts and one of the most moving specials was “Robin’s Journey,” documenting the ABC anchor’s battle with cancer. John’s legendary energy is now channeled into a new venture with Robin. He is the Executive VP of Programming & Development for “Rock n’ Robin Productions,” managing daily operations and the editorial and creative content for every type of show imaginable for networks, cable and online audiences. When asked about a “dream project” he would like to create, he mentioned his love for musical theater and his desire to present live musical theater for a wide television audience. In actuality, he already is fulfilling his true, more serious dream, and that is to cover stories about cancer research, treatment, prevention and early detection. As a survivor of cancer, John experienced firsthand the toll the disease takes. “Yes it’s great to do journalism when it entertains people, it’s great to do television that entertains – that can also be therapeutic – but really giving hardcore information that can help people live healthier or extend their lives, or get treatments that they need, especially with a life threatening illness like cancer, that to me feels like the purpose I went into journalism.” To that end, he and Robin just launched “Cutting Edge of Cancer” for WebMD.

The passion for cancer research also is reflected in Anthony’s career creating unique jewelry. Anthony finds inspiration all around him and his signature piece is the Francesca cuff, named for his mother who miraculously battled back from stage four lung cancer. Its butterfly motif in diamonds and colorful gems symbolize hope, and a portion of the proceeds is donated to cancer research. His appreciation for precious stones and designing began at a very young age. Imagine his Brooklyn grade school teacher’s surprise when Anthony completed the assignment to bring a sample mineral to class and showed up with his father’s triple diamond ring! His designing talents were first focused more on high fashion evening wear and bridal gowns. After working in Paris, he returned to New York and started Francesca Couture. He gained further acclaim when he created a $300,000 diamond encrusted wedding gown for a private client, even making it into “Ripley’s Believe It or Not.” (The diamonds were eventually used for jewelry.)

And excitement seems to find Anthony. You may recall the story of a passenger who left behind a case filled with $200,000 worth of jewels in a cab. The good-hearted taxi driver returned it to – yes, Anthony! When the couple moved to Holmdel, Anthony retired. Not surprisingly, Anthony is now out of retirement and has “traded stitches for stones” with the launch of his La’Bate jewelry line (labatejewelry.com). Each piece is unique and contains only ethically sourced stones. They are hand forged in India and are lovingly and thoughtfully designed by Anthony. “Each stone – just like a stitch – has a story, which I find fascinating and inspiring.” The jewelry has caught the eye of Andy Cohen, host of Bravo’s nightly series “Watch What Happens: Live” and a lot of the “Housewives”. More locally, the irrepressible Anthony showcased his lines at a launch party in Red Bank at Gotham last month. Over one hundred guests poured over his creations, while mingling, enjoying food, drinks and a DJ. On the spur of the moment, Anthony took the microphone. He quickly organized a “Mannequin Challenge” and the loud upbeat partiers stopped – and struck a pose. This joy for life and playful spirit is reflected in his creations and in his child rearing philosophy.

Throughout my time with them, Anthony and John reflected on family life, while simultaneously laughing, dressing the children, gathering snacks and taking turns for the twins’ bathroom runs. All this is possible because they met through a mutual friend and have been together over fifteen years. They enjoyed a commitment ceremony in Copenhagen in 2003 and a Holmdel backyard wedding in 2014. The twins, and each other, bring joy and laughter every day. Anthony and John hope for a safe future for their children, free of fear and with no limits on their aspirations or self-worth. Interviewed separately, both dads expressed the overriding hope that Francesca and A.J. will be kind and will know kindness. Their evening game of “I love you because…” is a very positive stepping stone, and the twins certainly have very kind and special parents to guide them.